1 11 


\m 


BV  4501  .M342  1909 
Mahan,  A.  T.  1840-1914 
The  harvest  within 


THE    HARVEST  WITHIN 


THE 

HARVEST   WITHIN 

THOUGHTS  ON  THE  LIFE  OF 
THE  CHRISTIAN 

/  BY 

A.  T.  MAHAN,  D.C.L.,  LL.D. 

CAPTAIN,   U.    S.    NAVY 
AUTHOR     OF     **  THE    INFLUENCE    OF     SEA    POWER,'*     ETC 


'<  Because  I  live,  ye  shall  live  also."  —  St.  John  xiv.  19 


BOSTON 

LITTLE,  BROWN,  AND    COMPANY 

1909 


Copyright^  igoQy 
By  Alfred  T.  Mahan. 

All  rights  reserved 
Published  June,  1909 


THE   UNIVERSITY  PRESS,   CAMBRIDGE,  U.S.A. 


PREFACE 

AS  a  man  nears  the  term  of  life,  the  question 
may  properly  arise  whether  experience  has 
yielded  him  results  which  he  should  not  carry 
away  with  him  when  he  dies.  It  is  a  question  of 
doubtful  answer;  for  not  only  are  personal  inward 
experiences  seldom  —  almost  never  —  fit  subject  for 
communication  to  others,  but  even  the  practical  re- 
sults of  such  experience,  realized  in  thought  and  con- 
clusions, may  have  little  value  outside  the  individual, 
however  decisive  their  influence  upon  himself.  Self 
deception  in  such  a  matter  is  easy;  the  sense  of  pro- 
portion is  readily  lost;  one  may  think  too  highly  of 
his  thoughts  as  well  as  of  himself. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  fortunate  provision  that 
a  man  shall  carry  away  with  him  no  possession  ex- 
ternal to  himself  does  not  hold  in  the  case  of  that 
most  profitable  of  all  the  assets  of  living,  the  fixed 
and  certain  practical  conclusions,  the  combined  out- 
come of  experience  and  reflection,  which  command 
allegiance  and  influence  conduct.  These  may  have 
value  to  fellow-combatants  in  the  battle  of  life,  and 
this  can  be  assured  only  by  committing  them  to 
writing.  The  effort  so  to  do,  moreover,  is  useful  to 
the  person  himself^    and  that  in  two  ways.     First, 


vi  PREFACE 

he  will  be  forced  generally  to  recognize  that  his 
thoughts  and  conclusions  are  fragmentary  in  char- 
acter; that  they  need  arrangement  and  coordination. 
Even  though  he  already  realize  the  supremacy  of 
some  particular  one  among  them,  the  others  need 
to  be  correctly  grouped  around  that  one,  in  their 
due  relation  to  each  other.  Secondly,  thus  con- 
fronting admitted  principles  of  action  will  bring 
home  the  shortcoming  of  conduct,  in  a  manner  and 
to  a  degree  calculated  to  sober  forever  any  undue 
self-appreciation. 

One  clear  duty  of  old  age,  whether  as  regards 
personal  character  or  unfulfilled  purposes,  is  to 
gather  up  the  fragments  that  remain;  to  redeem 
lost  time  and  lost  opportunity;  to  utilize  what  is 
left  of  powers  which  may  have  begun  to  fail,  and  the 
remnants  of  thought  or  knowledge  lying  still  at  loose 
ends.  Such  economy,  which  makes  the  householder 
to  prosper,  is  still  more  needful  to  the  life;  as  the 
one  exceeds  the  other  in  importance.  Never  is  this 
more  urgently  true  than  when  the  time,  always 
short,  has  become  surely  scant. 

That  which  is  offered  here  is  literally  fragmen- 
tary, in  origin  and  in  essential  characteristics;  the 
purely  occasional  results,  yielded  to  reflection  and 
to  experience  in  the  course  of  life,  noted  as  they 
occurred.  It  was  the  purpose  of  the  author  to 
emphasize  this  fact  by  a  title:  Fragments  that  Re- 
main ;  but  this  was  found  to  have  been  used  already 


PREFACE  vii 


by  another  writer.  The  attempt  certainly  has  been 
made  to  weave  these  disconnected  thoughts  into  a 
coherent  whole,  presenting  a  certain  sequence  of 
arrangement;  but  there  is  in  this  nothing  of  the 
elaboration  which  inheres  in  the  word  "system." 
The  utmost  that  has  been  sought  is  the  predomi- 
nance of  a  particular  thought,  which,  by  a  process 
resembling  that  of  natural  selection,  has  come  to  be 
the  centre  around  which  all  else  groups  itself,  in  re- 
lation and  subordination. 

That  thought  is  that  man  to-day  is  susceptible  of 
an  enthusiasm  for  Jesus  Christ,  resembHng,  but 
surpassing,  that  which  has  been  shown  in  past  times 
for  this  or  that  historical  character  in  many  nations; 
and  that  this  enthusiasm  is  love,  because  it  is  in- 
spired less  by  His  mighty  deeds  than  by  the  sense  of 
the  excellence  of  His  Person,  and  by  realization  of 
personal  relation  to  Him.  In  this  respect  His  su- 
premacy is  so  absolute  and  unapproachable  that 
He  alone  among  the  sons  of  men  stands  the  adequate 
object  of  affection;  not  to  this  nation  or  that,  not 
to  this  epoch  or  the  other,  but  to  universal  mankind 
and  to  every  age.  The  single  motive,  for  the  honor 
of  Christ,  —  or  as  He  put  it  for  Himself,  for  the 
glory  of  God,  —  is  alone  full  of  light.  It  unifies  all 
action  and  solves  all  perplexities.  Nothing  new  ^ 
No;    only  always  new. 

An  expression  has  been  attributed  to  Napoleon, 
that  the  enthusiasm,  which  was  stirred  in  his  armies 


Vlll 


PREFACE 


by  his  presence  on  a  battle  field,  was  still  aroused 
after  eighteen  centuries  by  the  Name  of  Jesus 
Christ,  in  myriads  who  had  never  seen  Him;  so 
that  for  Him  too  they  were  ready  to  die.  Whether 
truly  attributed  or  not,  the  words  are  truth;  and 
they  are  true  because  He  lives  now,  and  His  unseen 
presence  is  the  life  of  His  followers. 

There  are  many  who  apply  to  Christian  life  the 
test  of  our  Lord's  words :  He  that  hath  My  Com- 
mandments and  keepeth  them,  he  it  is  that  loves 
Me.  Comparatively,  little  heed  is  given  to  His  other 
saying,  which  observes  the  order  of  true  sequence. 
If  a  man  love  Me,  he  will  keep  My  Commandments. 
Life  is  impoverished  by  the  conception  which  puts 
work  first,  love  second;  for  this  reverses  the  order 
of  cause  and  effect.  The  riches  of  Christ  are  un- 
searchable; but  chief  among  them  is  the  gift  of  love 
for  Himself.    It  is  a  gift,  not  an  acquisition. 


CONTENTS 

THE   LIFE    OF   THE   CHRISTIAN 

Chapter  Page 

I    Power i 

II    Likeness 56 

III  Intercourse 88 

IV  Fulfilment 182 

V   Hope 248 


THE   PRACTICAL   IN   CHRISTIANITY      ...     263 


THE    LIFE   OF   THE   CHRISTIAN 


The  Harvest  Within 


THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

CHAPTER  I 
POWER 

THE  "Life  of  the  Christian"  and  "The 
Christian  Life"  may  seem  at  first  sight  to 
be  interchangeable  expressions;  but  they 
are  not.  They  are  indeed  closely  related,  as  cause 
to  effect.  Yet  the  distinction  is  real;  and  it  is  not 
without  purpose  that  The  Life  of  the  Christian  has 
been  chosen  to  designate  the  leading  theme  of  this 
present  writing. 

The  Christian  Life  signifies  more  exactly  what  we 
call  in  general  the  conduct  of  life,  —  the  acceptance 
of  principles,  the  establishment  therefrom  of  habits 
and  methods,  the  daily  regulating  of  times  and  occu- 
pations, the  whole  issuing  in  a  series  of  actions,  a  set 
course  of  life,  conformed  to  the  words  and  example 
of  Jesus  Christ.  An  instance  of  such  systematized 
life,  a  model  held  up  to  us  as  an  illustration,  is  the 
"  Christian  Year,"  ordered  by  the  Church  for  the  due 
and  proportioned  remembrance,  and  observance,  of 
the  chief  historical  events  in  the  Life  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ;    preeminently  those   set  forth  in  the 


2  THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

Creeds.  By  this  means  the  Church  keeps  the  char- 
acteristic features  of  that  Life,  in  due  order  of  suc- 
cession, ever  before  her  members,  as  the  exemplar  to 
which  they  are  to  conform  their  own;  this  graphic 
teaching  being  elucidated  and  enforced  by  set  prayers 
and  passages  from  the  Word  of  God,  bringing  out  the 
full  significance  of  the  historical  facts.  Further,  these 
facts,  when  confessed  by  the  mouth  and  embraced 
by  the  heart,^  become  effectual  in  the  Life  of  the 
Christian.  Features  in  the  Life  of  his  Lord,  mani- 
festing His  power,  they  are  assimilated  to,  and  be- 
come powers  in,  the  life  of  the  follower,  by  his  union 
with  Him.  Thus  it  is  written,  "Your  life  is  hid  with 
Christ  in  God."  ^  For  the  Life  of  the  Christian  is  an 
interior  condition,  of  which  the  Christian  Life  is  the 
outward  expression.  The  interior  condition  is  that 
of  Faith,  and  thereby  of  vital  union  with  Jesus  Christ,^ 
through  the  appointed  joints  and  bands  ;^  a  union 
so  complete  as  to  associate,  even  to  identify,  us  with 
Him  in  those  historical  sequences  of  His  Life  which 
are  recited  in  the  Creeds.  This  union,  to  use  His 
own  simile,  is  as  close  and  real  as  that  by  which 
the  vine-branch  shares  the  root  and  vigor  of  the 
vine.^ 

Lest  the  nature  of  this  Life  of  the  Christian  should 
be  misconceived,  it  must  from  the  outset  be  noted, 
and  should  be  carefully  distinguished,  that  this 
simile  of  Christ's  does  not  warrant  any  pantheistic 
conception,    any   idea    of  loss  of   personality   in   a 

*  Romans,  x,  8-11.     ^  Colossians,  iii,  3.     ^  Galatians,  iii,  25-29. 
^  Colossians,  ii,  19.     Ephesians,  i,  22-23;  ^^y  ^^' 
^  St.  John,  XV,  1-6. 


POWER 


Divine  essence.  On  the  contrary,  just  because  the 
Life  of  God  is  characteristically  personal,  this  Life 
from  Him  deriving  is  personal,  increasedly  over  that 
which  for  distinction  v^e  call  the  natural  life.  The 
branch  does  not  cease  to  exist,  distinct  as  a  branch, 
because  it  draws  its  life  from  the  vine.  Thus  we 
have  union  with  Christ  in  that  new  human  nature  of 
which  His  Incarnation  is  the  origin  and  the  abiding 
source;  union  with  Him  in  His  Life  of  humiliation 
and  obedience,  of  which  His  Birth,  and  acceptance 
of  unsinful  human  infirmities,  are  the  visible  expres- 
sion; union  with  Him  in  His  Sufferings,  in  His 
Crucifixion,  Death,  Resurrection,  and  Ascension.  In 
such  wise  are  these  incidents  of  His  Life  realized  to 
those  who  live  in  Him,  that  it  can  be  said  of  them 
with  exactness,  as  does  St.  Paul :  crucified  with 
Christ,  dead  with  Christ,  buried  with  Christ,  risen 
with  Christ,  ascended  with  Christ.^  Our  Lord's 
simile  embraces  implicitly  all  these  explicit  amplifi- 
cations of  the  Apostle,  the  life  of  the  branch  being 
the  extension  of  the  life  of  the  Vine;  contingent 
always,  be  it  remembered,  upon  abiding  in  Him. 
Whatever  of  virtue  —  that  is,  of  power  —  there  was 
in  those  deeds  of  Him  Who  was  God  as  well  as  Man 
abides  in  measure  in  His  followers  also;  and  this 
power — the  dwelling  in  Christ  and  Christ  in  him — ^ 
is  the  Life  of  the  Christian,  his  own  in  present  pos- 
session, though  not  his  own  in  origin,  in  accomplish- 
ment, nor  in  maintenance. 

^  Galatians,  ii,  20;  vi,  14.  Romans,  vi,  4-1 1.  2  Corinthians,  v,  14. 
Romans,  vi,  2,  3.    Colossians,  ii,  20;  9-13;  iii,  i.    Ephesians,  ii,  4-6. 
^  St.  John,  vi,  56,  57;  XV,  4-6.     i  St.  John,  ii,  24. 


4  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

This  derivation  of  life  is  as  actual  as  is  that  of 
natural  life  from  the  line  of  ancestry  preceding  it;  but 
it  differs  in  that  the  gift  of  natural  life  is  mediate, 
through  man  though  from  God,  and,  once  bestowed, 
is  independent  of  the  human  medium;  whereas  the 
spiritual  life,  the  Life  of  the  Christian,  is  immediate 
in  its  derivation  from  Christ,  who  is  the  Personal 
giver,  and  the  condition  of  dependence  is  perpetual. 
Severance  is  death.  St.  Paul  speaks  of  this  condition 
as  being  a  new  creation,  a  new  man,^  created  in  Christ 
Jesus  for  good  works. ^  Or,  as  St.  Peter  and  St. 
James  write,  God  has  begotten  us  anew  unto  a  living 
hope,  not  of  corruptible  seed  but  of  incorruptible, 
by  the  Word  of  God  which  liveth  and  abideth,  that 
we  should  be  a  kind  of  first  fruits  of  His  creatures.^ 
All  three  but  echo  the  saying  of  the  Master,  Except  a 
man  be  born  anew,  he  cannot  see  the  Kingdom  of 
God.*  St.  Paul  again  in  a  striking  passage  sums  up 
the  matter  in  these  words :  I  have  been  crucified  with 
Christ;  and  it  is  no  longer  I  that  live,  but  Christ 
liveth  in  me;  and  that  life  which  I  now  live  in  the 
flesh,  I  live  in  faith,  the  faith  which  is  in  the  Son  of 
God,  Who  loved  me  and  gave  Himself  up  for  me.^ 

Here,  at  the  threshold  of  the  Life  which  is  the 
Christian's,  in  the  word  Faith,  we  meet  an  impedi- 
ment over  which  many  stumble,  needlessly  and  even 
wilfully,  groping  at  noonday  as  in  the  night.  So  it 
was  written  beforehand  concerning  Him  and  them, 

*  2  Corinthians,  V,  17.  Ephesians,  ii,  13-16;  iv,  20-24.  Colos- 
slans,  iii,  10,  11.  ^  Ephesians,  ii,  10. 

^  I  St.  Peter,  i,  3,  4,  23.     St.  James,  i,  18. 

*  St.  John,  iii,  3.  ^  Galatians,  ii,  20. 


POWER 


I  lay  in  Zion  a  chief  corner  stone;  and  he  that  be- 
lieveth  on  Him  shall  not  be  confounded.  But  unto 
them  which  be  disobedient,  the  same  stone  which  to 
the  believing  is  the  head  of  the  corner,  becomes  the 
stone  of  stumbling  and  the  rock  of  offence.^  For 
the  subject  matter  of  the  Faith  is  a  Person,  —  Jesus 
Christ.^  Faith  is  the  condition  of  our  union  with 
Him,  and  through  Him  with  that  which  He  revealed  : 
God  the  Father,  and  our  true  life.  Faith  is  the  act 
by  which  Man,  on  his  part,  lays  hold  upon  the  Life 
which  God,  on  His  part,  tenders  continually  to  all 
men.^  Hence,  unbelief — towards  God  —  and  dis- 
obedience —  to  a  revealed  law  of  life  —  are  inter- 
changeable terms,  the  two  sides  of  the  same  shield, 
and  the  fault  common  to  both  is  in  the  will.  Let  not 
a  violent  disclaimer  provoke  the  impatient  here  to 
close  discussion  by  the  premature  assertion  that 
Faith  is  not  a  matter  of  will.  Rather  let  him  con- 
sider whether  his  own  conception  of  Faith  be  not 
responsible  for  a  misapprehension  of  far  reaching, 
yes,  of  decisive,  consequence. 

For,  in  considering  the  Life  of  the  Christian,  we 
must  face  the  facts  at  once,  and  perceive  that  Faith, 
whereby  the  Christian  lays  hold  on  life,  is  on  the 
human  side  an  act  of  the  will;  and  that  therefore 
man  is  responsible  for  its  presence  or  absence  in 
himself.     There  is  a  Divine  side  to  Faith;    but  to 


^  Isaiah,  xxviii,  i6.    i  St.  Peter,  ii,  6-8.   St.  Matthew,  xxi,  42-44. 

^  Acts,  xvi,  31;  XX,  21;  xxiv,  24;  xxvi,  18.  St.  John,  xiv,  i. 
Ephesians,  i,  15.    Colossians,  ii,  5. 

^  St.  John,  iii,  17.  i  Timothy,  ii,  4;  iv,  10.  Titus,  ii,  11.  2  St. 
Peter,  iii,  9. 


6  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

that  God  will  not  be  wanting.  The  full  responsibility 
therefore  rests  on  the  man,  nor  can  he  shake  it  by 
any  disclaimer.    It  remains,  whether  he  will  or  not. 

Dr.  Johnson,  as  reported  by  Boswell,  has  summed 
up  the  case  with  his  accustomed  shrewdness  and 
point.  Speaking  of  human  life  in  the  general,  he 
said,  "A  man  must  accept  life  on  the  terms  upon 
which  it  is  offered  to  him."  His  will  must  con- 
form to  the  conditions  as  he  finds  them.  In  the 
immediate  instance  he  was  talking  about  drinking 
wine,  as  pertinent  to  both  himself  and  his  hearer. 
He  had  a  strong  head,  but  lacked  self-control;  if 
he  drank  at  all  he  was  constitutionally  Uable  to 
excess.  He  accepted  the  condition,  and  took  refuge 
in  entire  abstinence.  "Now,  the  wine  on  the  table 
has  for  me  no  more  attraction  than  for  the  dog  under 
the  table."  Boswell  had  a  weak  head;  in  conse- 
quence was  not  seldom  overcome.  He  did  not  ac- 
cept the  condition,  and  the  weakness  increased  upon 
him  to  his  destruction.  It  is  the  same  with  any 
bodily  trouble.  A  man  of  consumptive  tendency, 
of  weak  heart,  or  other  infirmity,  must  accept  the 
condition  and  order  his  life  accordingly.  If  not, 
the  condition  proves  too  much  for  him.  In  either 
event,  his  action  is  one  of  his  will.  What  is  here 
noted,  of  certain  particular  conditions,  is  evidently 
true  of  all  the  circumstances,  external  or  internal, 
environment  or  heredity,  which  attend  upon  any 
calling  or  personality.  It  is  true  also  of  those  physical 
conditions  which  we  style  loosely  the  "laws"  of 
Nature;  for  example,  gravitation,  and  the  inability 
of  man's  life  to  exist  under  water.    We  have  to  ac- 


POWER 


cept  the  condition  that  we  cannot  safely  throw  our- 
selves from  a  height  or  into  the  sea. 

It  may  be  presumed  that  all  who  are  devotionally 
familiar  with  the  text  and  spirit  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, the  Christian  Code  and  Charter,  will  agree 
that  the  decisive  condition,  upon  which  the  gift  of 
the  Life  of  the  Christian  is  offered  to  men,  is  summed 
up  in  one  expression,  "We  walk  by  faith,  not  by 
sight."  ^  The  verb  "walk,"  by  a  metaphor  very  com- 
mon in  the  Bible,  expresses  the  whole  of  living,  the 
inner  life  and  the  ordered  conduct.  The  condition 
by  which  both  are  to  be  ruled  is  "faith,  not  sight." 
We  may,  if  we  choose,  refuse  to  accept  the  condition; 
but  in  that  case  we  cannot  reasonably  expect  the 
result.  The  Life  of  the  Christian,  with  all  its  present 
powers,  the  powers  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  of  the 
world  to  come,^  and  with  its  immense  and  glorious 
future,  can  be  received  and  retained  only  under  the 
condition  that  we  will  discipline  our  inner  motives 
and  order  our  outward  lives,  conform  our  princi- 
ples and  our  practices,  to  the  commands  of  One 
Whom  we  have  not  seen,  and  with  reference  to 
issues  of  which  we  have  no  other  assurance  than 
His  words,  credibly  transmitted  to  us.  To  do  this 
is  an  act  of  Faith ;  it  is  also  evidently  an  act  of  the 
will.  A  man  may  do  it,  or  may  not  do  it,  as  he 
chooses;  but  in  either  case  he  exercises  his  will, 
and  incurs  responsibility. 

It  will  be  recognized,  of  course,  that  this  state- 

^  2  Corinthians,  v,  7;   iv,  18.     Romans,  viii,  18-25.    See  also 
Hebrews,  xi,  with  special  reference  to  xii,  1-12. 
^  Hebrews,  vi,  4-6. 


8  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

ment  confronts  at  once  a  strong  prepossession.  The 
minds  of  men  are  possessed  beforehand  with  the 
impression  that  because  one  aspect  of  Faith  is  be- 
lief, intellectual  acceptance,  therefore  that  is  the 
whole  of  Faith.  A  palpable  non  sequitur,  true,  but 
one  endued  with  all  the  power  of  resolute  ignorance. 
Faith  is  belief;  a  man  cannot  believe  by  an  action 
of  the  will;  therefore  a  man  cannot  by  using  his 
will  exercise  faith.  So  runs  the  unformulated  syl- 
logism which  has  resulted  in  a  devastating  practical 
fallacy. 

It  win  be  asked  then :  If  Faith  be  more  than  be- 
lief, what  is  Faith  .?  A  reply  is  due,  yet  categorical 
definition  is  impossible;  if  attempted,  an  essay  of 
demonstration  would  be  needed  in  explanation  and 
support.  Faith,  like  light,  is  complex;  it  can  be 
analyzed  into  several  components,  as  the  prism  re- 
solves the  light  of  the  sun  into  several  colors,  each 
of  which  possesses  its  peculiar  virtue  and  its  par- 
ticular influence  in  the  whole  result.  Primarily, 
Faith  has  its  subjective  and  objective  aspects.  It 
is  on  the  one  hand  a  faculty,  or  power,  of  the  man 
himself;  while  on  the  other  it  is  directed  towards, 
rests  upon,  something  external  to  him.  The  two 
correspond,  are  correlative.  Faith  appears  in  one 
form  as  a  conclusion  of  the  intellect,  resting  upon  ' 
reasons  which  fall  short  of  perception  by  the  senses, 
and  to  this  aspect  modern  prepossession  has  sought  1 
to  confine  it;  but  the  words  "trust"  and  "con- 
fidence," closely  cognate  to  Faith,  as  the  etymology 
of  confidence  shows,  represent  phases  of  Faith  which 
are  moral  in  character. 


POWER 


Again,  Faith  is  susceptible  of  growth,  Hke  any 
other  faculty.  On  the  intellectual  side,  it  may  be 
increased  by  the  accumulation  of  evidence,  or  by 
deeper  reflection;  it  will  even  gather  vigor  by  sim- 
ple abiding  in  the  assurance  in  which  it  began, ^  un- 
consciously, as  a  plant  grows.  On  the  moral  side, 
confidence  and  trust,  in  one's  self  or  in  Another, 
can  develop  under  repeated  experiences,  which  are 
the  external  or  objective  sustenance  of  Faith;  or 
they  do  so  by  repeated  exercise,  which  is  an  internal 
effort  of  the  will.  Thus  it  was  charged  as  a  moral 
fault  against  the  Israehtes  in  the  wilderness,  that, 
though  they  had  seen  the  works  of  God,  had  had 
experience  of  Him,  they  had  not  known  His  ways;  ^ 
had  not,  as  we  say,  profited  by  their  experience,  so 
as  to  perceive  with  the  mind  and  obey  with  the  will. 

It  is  unreasonable  to  expect  that  the  faith  in  which 
a  man  first  comes  to  Christ,  and  accepts  Him  as  Lord 
and  Master,  should  have  reached  already  the  full 
power  of  belief  expressed  in  the  word  "Conviction," 
which  is  the  ripened  harvest  of  Faith  on  the  intel- 
lectual and  moral  sides.  Conviction,  both  in  common 
usage  and  by  derivation,  conveys  an  idea  stronger 
than  that  of  a  certainty  possessed.  A  convinced  man 
does  not  so  much  possess,  as  is  possessed  by,  "con- 
quered'' {con-vinco)  by,  the  belief  which  he  holds. 
The  first  disciples  followed  Christ,  when  their  faith 
was  by  His  own  definition  less  than  a  grain  of  mustard 
seed.^     It  was  inadequate  as  yet  to  full  moral  effect 

^  Hebrews,  Hi,  14. 

^  Hebrews,  iii,  7-12.     Numbers,  xiv,  11,  12,  20-24. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xvii,  19-21.     St.  Luke,  xvii,  5,  6. 


10  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

upon  life;  intellectually,  it  was  for  the  time  incapable 
of  understanding  His  plainest  speech;  but  it  none 
the  less  held  the  germ  of  the  mighty  works  of  the 
Faith  which  revolutionized  Europe,  and  will  yet  rev- 
olutionize the  world. 

The  confidence,  the  trust,  of  a  little  child  is  prob- 
ably the  completest  illustration  of  Faith  on  its  moral 
side.^  It  is  unreasoning,  and  in  so  far  defective;  yet 
it  is  not  unreasonable,  for,  however  unconsciously, 
it  rests  upon  experience,  usually  of  the  conduct,  the 
"works,"  of  a  person  whom  the  child  knows.  As  a 
rule,  an  infant  shrinks  from  those  whom  it  does  not 
know,  of  whom  it  has  no  experience.  Doubtless, 
we  all  throughout  life  trust  persons,  but  other  con- 
siderations enter  and  modify.  The  confidence  is 
not  simple,  single-eyed,  as  is  that  of  a  child.  The 
child  does  not  know  what  the  person  will  do  next, 
nor  whither  he  is  taking  him  at  any  particular  mo- 
ment; like  the  father  of  the  faithful,  "he  goes  out, 
not  knowing  whither  he  goes."  ^  This  manifests  the 
power  of  Faith  over  action ;  but  does  not  supply  the 
reasonable  basis  for  a  full  grown  man  to  trust  a 
Person  whom  he  has  not  seen,  before  he  has  experi- 
ence of  Him.  The  faith  of  the  child  befits  the  child; 
but  the  man  not  only  must,  but  should,  put  away 
childish  things.  Yet  what  a  loss  of  comfort  and  of 
strength  that  putting  away  means  we  all  know,  and 
what  a  weary  way  to  travel  back  to  reach  once  more 
the   child's   trust   in   the   Father.     To   know   Thee, 

^  St.  Matthew,  xviii,  3;  xix,  14.  St.  Mark,  x,  15.  St.  Luke, 
xviii,  17. 

^  Hebrews,  xi,  8.     Acts,  vii,  2-5. 


POWER  II 


the  only  true  God,  and  Jesus  Christ  whom  Thou  has 
sent,  ^  is  in  chief  measure  a  matter  of  experience, 
Hke  that  of  a  child's. 

With  these  two  examples  before  us,  viz.,  the  growth 
of  the  Apostles'  faith  and  the  realized  completeness 
of  a  child's  trust,  —  upon  which  his  future  as  well  as 
present  depends,  —  together  with  the  power  over 
action  which  Faith  in  both  instances  shows,  we  have 
at  once  the  motive  for  effort  and  the  guide  as  to  its 
direction  and  reasonable  expectations.  A  man  need 
not  demand  of  himself  at  the  beginning  more  than 
the  less  than  the  grain  of  mustard  seed.  The  Apostles 
followed  Christ,  not  because  they  saw  in  Him  what 
Christians  now  believe,  nor  yet  for  purely  unselfish 
reasons.  "What  shall  we  have  therefor.?"^  was 
doubtless  a  question  with  the  Twelve,  and  not  with 
St.  Peter  only.  Yet,  with  all  the  loss  and  doubts 
and  uncertainties  revealed  by  the  question,  they 
nevertheless  had  made  a  definite  choice,  moral  in 
character  and  resting  upon  reasons.  They  had  for- 
saken all  and  followed  Christ,  had  made  a  choice 
between  Him  and  seeming  self-interest;  and  that 
choice  was  motived  by  the  recognition,  however  im- 
perfect and  dim,  of  a  character,  of  a  Person,^  of  Him. 
These  two  —  the  choice  and  the  Person  —  are  the 
chief  elements  of  religious  faith. 

We  may,  therefore,  without  great  probable  error, 
and  for  present  purposes,  define  Faith  as  being  in 
its  beginnings  a  moral  choice,  resting  upon  confidence 
in  a  Person,  and  carried  into  practical  action,  to  which 

^  St.  John,  xvii,  3.  ^  gj.^  Matthew,  xix,  27;  xx,  20-24. 

^  St.  John,  vi,  66-69. 


12  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

intellectual  certainty  is  subordinate  in  place  and  may 
be  subsequent  in  time.  Thus  St.  Paul  writes,  If  thou 
shalt  confess  with  thy  mouth  Jesus  as  Lord,  and 
shalt  believe  in  thy  heart  that  God  raised  Him  from 
the  dead,  thou  shalt  be  saved ;  for  with  the  heart  man 
believeth  unto  righteousness.^  Here  also  appeal  may 
confidently  be  made  to  the  conditions  upon  which 
the  Life  of  the  Christian  is  offered.  From  the 
Master  Himself  come  the  words.  If  any  man  willeth 
to  do  God's  will,  —  will  "walk"  in  the  sense  above 
defined,  —  he  shall  know  the  doctrine,  whether  it 
be  of  God,  or  whether  I  speak  of  Myself.'  Moral 
choice,  to  do  God's  will,  results  ultimately  in  knowl- 
edge, a  condition  of  the  intellect.  Yet  not  of  the 
intellect  only;  there  is  heart  knowledge  as  well  as 
brain  knowledge.  There  is  a  knowledge  also  which 
escapes  analysis,  the  one  accurate  account  of  which 
is  embraced  in  the  word  "conviction,"  a  knowledge 
directly  ministered  to  man  by  the  Spirit  of  God.  So 
also  in  moral  choice  the  intellect  enters,  discerning  good 
from  evil;  but  that  which  chooses  the  good  is  the  will. 
But,  it  may  be  replied.  This  is  a  natural  process; 
many  men  thus  choose  good  and  reject  evil  without 
being  Christians,  with  no  claim  or  thought  of  a 
living  union  with  Christ  by  Faith.  Undoubtedly. 
Christianity  —  which  is  Christ  —  denies  not  the 
good  that  is  in  man.  He  came  to  fulfil,^  not  only  the 
Law  and  the  Prophets,  the  best  that  man  knew  be- 
fore His  time,  but  whatsoever  else  of  good  is  found 
in  man  and  through  man.     A  Christian  may  in  no 

^  Romans,  x,  9,  10.  ^  St.  John,  vii,  17. 

5  St.  Matthew,  V,  17-20. 


POWER  13 


wise  presume  to  contemn  those  who  follow  righteous- 
ness as  they  understand  it,  nor  to  speak  lightly  of 
their  good  deeds.  Nevertheless,  the  Christian  may 
not  be  backward  to  affirm  that  there  is  a  better  way, 
—  a  best  way  —  which  alone  will  fulfil  all  this,  even 
as  Christ  does  the  Law  and  the  Prophets;  and  that 
they  who  by  their  own  neglect  (which  is  their  own 
will)  do  not  choose  that  best  way,  fall  short  of  the 
life  which  is  God's  gift  to  the  Christian.  They  fall 
short  of  its  powers,  and  may  fall  short  of  its  rewards, 
by  incurring  the  responsibility  of  an  erring  moral 
choice.  The  commands  of  Christ  are  not  fully 
obeyed,  the  deeds  He  commands  are  not  perfectly 
done,  if  they  are  done  on  their  own  merits  merely  and 
not  in  devotion  to  Him. 

The  moral  or  spiritual  value  of  acts  depends  upon 
the  motive.  A  man  may  discipline  his  body  to  make 
it  a  fitting  instrument  in  God's  service,  or  he  may  do 
the  same  to  win  a  match.  To  substitute  self-approval, 
walking  by  the  sight  of  one's  own  eyes  or  judgment, 
for  the  approval  of  God,  which  is  to  walk  by  faith, 
involves  a  radical  change  of  motive.  Though  the  act 
remain  identical,  its  spiritual  significance  is  altered, 
and  therewith  its  spiritual  worth.  The  term  "sight" 
applies  as  exactly  to  any  form  of  simple  self-depend- 
ence as  it  does  to  the  evidence  of  the  senses  on  which 
Science  bases  its  conclusions.  Dr.  Johnson  justly 
remarked  that  even  **  religious  exercises,  if  not  per- 
formed with  an  intention  to  please  God,  avail  us 
nothing.  As  our  Saviour  says  of  those  who  perform 
them  for  other  motives,  *They  have  their  reward.'^ " 
^  St.  Matthew,  vi,  1-18. 


14  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

The  words  of  St.  Paul,  "They  who  run  in  a  race  run 
all,  but  one  receiveth  the  prize,"  ^  ^pply  exactly  to 
the  competition  of  motives  in  the  same  person.  If 
the  supreme  motive  be  Christ,  the  reward  will  be  one; 
if  self-approval,  or  other  lawful  motive,  another;  if 
unlawful,  a  third. 

The  highest  moral  achievement  is  not  the  will  to 
follow  righteousness,  nor  yet  the  following  it.  The 
supreme  moral  choice  is  to  follow  righteousness 
because  it  is  the  expression  of  God's  Being  and 
God's  Will.  Faith  has  to  do  with  a  Person;  it  is  the 
choice  of  good  because  it  is  God's  good.  In  nothing 
was  more  conspicuous  the  downward  tendency  of 
a  recent  falling  from  faith  than  when  the  man  said, 
of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  "  These  things  I  accept, 
not  because  Christ  said  them,  but  because  they  com- 
mend themselves  to  my  conscience,  to  my  own  moral 
sense."  It  would  be  difficult  to  phrase  more  patheti- 
cally the  distinction  between  human  righteousness 
and  God's  righteousness;  a  phase  of  that  which  St. 
Paul  teaches  in  his  antithesis  of  Faith  and  Works. 

Faith,  therefore,  is  the  choice  of  good  in  devotion 
to  God.  There  is  herein  a  fullness  of  life  and  of 
joy  which  exalts  the  creature  as  no  following  of 
righteousness  for  its  own  sake,  or  as  satisfying  one's 
own  conscience  can  do;  because  the  ground  for 
satisfaction  is  shifted  from  the  pleasing  of  self  to 
the  pleasing  of  God,  from  self-approval  to  God's 
approval.  The  reasonableness  of  this  must  be  man- 
ifest to  any  who  will  discard  prepossession  and 
recognize  human  nature  as  it  is,  —  the  conditions 
^  I  Corinthians,  ix,  24-27. 


POWER 


upon  which  our  common  life  is  offered  to  us.  What 
we  need  in  life  is  not  only  a  right  choice  and  effort. 
We  need  also  fullness,  power;  and  in  human  Hfe, 
as  we  know  it  historically,  there  is  no  force  so  uni- 
versal  and   supreme  as  that  of  devotion  —  love 

to  a  person.  Where  it  enters  there  enters  a  fullness 
of  motive  and  of  energy  to  which  naught  else  com- 
pares. "It  is  lord  of  all."  That  it  is  often  tran- 
sient; that  it  is  often  aroused  by  an  unworthy 
object;  that  it  is  itself  too  often  defiled  with  baser 
impulses,  —  all  these  deductions  only  emphasize  the 
more  its  might,  in  that  even  when  alloyed  or  de- 
based it  remains  supreme.  We  may  think  it  were 
better  otherwise;  but,  Johnson  again,  there  it  is, 
one  of  the  conditions  —  the  greatest  —  on  which 
even  our  common  life  is  offered  us.  Give  to  love 
permanency,  intrinsic  purity  of  motive,  growing 
intensity,  and  a  worthy  object,  and  there  is  added 
to  the  life  of  man  a  wealth,  not  of  happiness  only, 
but  of  power;  and  not  of  power  only,  but  of  a  self- 
purifying  agency  which  by  its  own  action  continu- 
ally exalts  character  by  subjecting  self.  And  let 
it  be  remembered,  as  a  leading  factor  in  the  Chris- 
tian argument,  that  this  love  is  not  merely  a  human 
love  for  God,  but  the  "love  of  God";  that  is, 
God's  own  love,  made  ours  in  our  measure  by  our 
vital  union  with  Jesus  Christ.  As  man  grows  spir- 
itually, God's  love,  almighty,  pure,  enduring  "to 
the  end,"  ^  is  wrought  in  man  and  becomes  his  own. 
Consider  what  God's  love  is,  as  manifested  to  us; 
not  in  its  fullness,  intrinsically,  for  that  we  cannot 

^  St.  John,  xiii,  i. 


1 6  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

fathom,  since  it  has  the  measure  of  infinitude.  The 
love  of  the  Father  to  the  Son,  of  the  Son  for  the 
Father,  of  Each  to  and  from,  the  Holy  Spirit,  as 
told  to  us,  might  be  open  to  the  retort  which  our 
Lord  addresses  to  mankind :  Thou  lovest  Him  who 
loves  Thee;^  but,  to  use  St.  Paul's  expression,  God 
commendeth  His  own  love  towards  us,  in  that, 
while  we  were  yet  sinners,  Christ  died  for  us.  While 
we  were  enemies.  He  spared  not  His  own  Son,  but 
delivered  Him  up  for  us  all.^  In  Creation,  God  has 
found  the  opportunity  and  the  occasion  for  mani- 
festing love  to  the  unthankful  and  to  the  evil  ^  —  to 
His  enemies.  Nor  can  we  measure  the  greatness 
of  that  love,  because  we  imperfectly  realize  the  re- 
pulsiveness  to  God  of  Sin,  in  which  consists  the 
enmity  to  Him.^ 

We  therefore  may  give  ungrudging  admiration 
to  the  strong  man  who  fights  his  life's  battle,  and 
runs  his  life's  course  in  the  pure  moral  choice  of 
righteousness  for  righteousness'  sake;  finding  in 
self-approval  sufl&cient  support  and  sufficient  re- 
ward; hoping  nothing  from  the  future,  believing 
nothing  concerning  God,  fearing  nothing.  But 
when  we  shall  have  exhausted  recognition  of  so 
grand  a  heroism,  are  we  bound  not  to  admit  that 
there  is  something  grievously  lacking,  not  to  the 
man's  joy,  —  a  motive  he  might  himself  reject,  — 
but  to  the  fullness  of  his  life,  which  means  the  full- 

^  St.  Matthew,  V,  43-48. 

^  Romans,  v,  8,  10;  viii,  32.  ^  St.  Luke,  vi,  27-36. 

*  Romans,  viii,  7.  Ephesians,  ii,  2-4.  Colossians,  i,  21.  St. 
James,  iv,  4. 


POWER  17 


ness  of  his  service  as  well  ?  No  such  hero  has  ever 
existed  who  in  devotedness  of  life  has  exceeded 
multitudes  of  the  Cross-bearers,  from  the  Leader 
down  through  His  host  of  followers.  What  we 
specifically  admire  in  these  instances,  few  relatively 
to  those  offered  by  Christian  Faith,  is  not  the  achieve- 
ment nor  the  self-denial,  to  which  the  annals  of 
Christendom  furnish  innumerable  parallels,  but  the 
heroism  which  has  done  so  much  for  naught.  But 
it  is  a  needless  heroism,  a  wasted  heroism,  and 
a  great  falling  short.  The  heroism  had  to  be  put 
forth,  because  the  power  which  God  would  supply 
has  been  rejected.  The  man's  being,  which  is  chief 
among  his  duties  to  his  fellows,  is  abnormally  de- 
veloped; heroism  beyond  what  was  required  of 
him,  the  power  of  love  for  God  eschewed.  The 
faculty  for  that  love  has  dwindled  by  neglect;  the 
love  is  lacking  which  by  the  purity  of  its  motive, 
the  worthiness  of  its  object,  the  increasing  power  it 
derives  from  that  object,  not  only  fulfills  the  man's 
being  but  thereby  fulfills  also  his  power.  "As  the 
man  is,  so  is  his  strength."  Shall  our  admiration 
belie  our  intelligence  and  call  this  one-sided  result 
success  in  a  fruitful  sense  .?  As  well  contend  that 
an  abnormal  power  of  hearing  were  well  purchased 
by  a  total  loss  of  sight. 

For,  love  for  One  thus  worthy  furnishes  a  motive 
and  a  power  with  which,  for  unremitting  force,  no 
passion  for  self-development  can  vie.  No  motive 
that  terminates  in  self,  not  even  the  passion  for  per- 
fection, can  in  this  respect  equal  the  impulse  which 
seeks  Another's  honor.     Moments  cannot  but  come 


1 8  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

when  the  question  will  arise:  "Is  it  worth  while 
thus  to  punish  the  natural  self  for  the  welfare  of 
the  ideal  self?"  We  have  a  striking  instance,  of 
a  celebrated  French  author  of  chaste  life,  in  his  old 
age  condoning  as  venial  the  gross  faults  from  which, 
in  virtue  of  early  prepossession  or  of  temperament, 
he  had  kept  his  prime.  In  the  face  of  his  own 
record  he  esteemed  it  a  light  matter  to  sacrifice  con- 
tinence to  pleasure.  Could  this  be  so  to  a  man  who 
sees  in  sin  deadly  offence,  less  to  his  own  self-respect 
than  to  one  beloved  .?  Contrast  the  conclusion  of 
St.  Paul:  Your  bodies  are  temples  of  God,  mem- 
bers of  Christ;  will  you  defile  them  ?  ^  The  ques- 
tion closes  discussion. 

In  the  choice  between  self  and  self,  what  account 
is  to  be  rendered  in  moments  of  passion  or  depres- 
sion }  The  answer  is  not  lacking  to  one  who  loves 
Another.  Failures  and  sins  may  befall  him,  —  there 
is  none  that  sinneth  not;^  but  the  bitterness  is  not 
in  the  injury  to  his  own  person,  to  his  self-respect, 
but  in  the  wrong  to  Him  he  loves.  That  in  his  own 
estimation  he  sins,  is  his  avowal  that  the  reason  for 
good  has  remained  unchallenged  through  all;  a 
reason  not  only  satisfying  to  the  intellect,  for  that 
it  should  be  admitted  the  plea  for  self-exaltment 
may  be,  but  satisfying  as  well  to  the  heart,  out  of 
which  are  the  issues  of  life. 

In  the  strong  necessity  for  loving  with  which  we 
find  ourselves  constituted,  man  does  not  fulfill  his 

*•  I  Corinthians,  iii,  i6,  17;   vi,  15-20.    Compare  St.  John,  ii, 
19-22. 
^^  I  St.  John,  I,  8.     Romans,  iii,  9,  10,  23.     St.  James,  iii,  2. 


POWER  19 


being  till  he  thus  loves  worthily  One  worthy  of  his 
love.  No  doing  takes  the  place  of  being;  nothing 
one  does  can  be  a  substitute  for  what  one  is.  Works 
are  as  nothing  to  loving.^  This  loving,  receiving 
from  God  and  giving  back  to  God  is  The  Life  of 
the  Christian,  because  it  is  pre-eminently  the  Life 
of  Christ,  Who  is  his  life.  In  this  strong  necessity 
for  loving  adequately,  loving  worthily  some  one 
worthy  of  love,  doubtless  lies  something  of  the  mys- 
tery of  the  Trinity,  of  the  Divine  Nature  in  the  like- 
ness of  which  God  has  created  man.  As  requisite 
to  the  fullness  of  His  Being,  which  Being  is  Love, 
even  the  Father  needs  that  which  is  relatively  ex- 
ternal to  His  Person  and  yet  commensurate  to  His 
Infinity.  An  object  thus  worthy  can  be  presented 
to  Him  only  in  One  who  "is  the  express  Image  of 
His  Person."  ^ 

In  a  recent  American  novel,  of  much  charm  and 
interest,  one  of  the  characters,  apparently  doubtful 
concerning  the  existence  of  God,  states  as  his  as- 
piration the  high  standard  of  excellence  which  he 
finds  himself  capable  of  conceiving.  But  is  that 
sufficing.?  —  I  do  not  say  ^'sufficient."  Does  such 
a  subjective  conception  present  that  externality  to 
self  which  love  must  find  in  order  to  act  fully,  to 
fulfill  itself.?  So  to  limit  aspiration  is,  essentially, 
to  love  self;  to  find  self-satisfaction  in  having 
reached  a  self-erected  standard,  —  a  caricature  of 
conscience.      The    human    mind    may    frame    the 

*  Revelation,  ii,  2-4.    i  Corinthians,  xiii. 

^  Hebrews,  i,  1-3.    2  Corinthians,  iv,  4.    Colossians,  i,  15. 


20  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

thought,  though  it  cannot  grasp  the  idea,^  that  the 
force  of  God's  "I  am  "  ^  may  be  such  that  the  con- 
sciousness betokened  by  that  Name  may  pass  into 
begetting;^  "the  very  image  of  His  substance"* 
thus  receiving  "Hfe  in  Himself,"  ^  co-eternal  with 
the  Father,  constituting  within  the  Godhead  the 
distinction  which  has  been  defined  as  one  of  Per- 
sons, Each  receiving  from  the  Other  love,  and  to 
that  Other  giving  back  love.  Thus  there  should 
always  have  been  the  Son  when  the  Father  was; 
but  a  human  consciousness  cannot  endue  its  concep- 
tion of  itself  with  that  exteriority,  that  separate  ex- 
istence, which  is  real  enough  to  elicit  even  human 
love  in  its  fullness.  In  sum,  man  needs  that  which 
only  God  can  supply,  not  merely  a  standard  for 
attainment  but  an  adequate  object  of  devotion. 

That  we  might  the  more  certainly  find  this  object, 
with  clear  assurance  of  mind  and  of  heart,  Christian- 
ity affirms  that  God  has  manifested  Himself  to  us 
in  a  perfect  human  life.  The  Man  Who  led  this  Life 
is  the  near  object  of  Faith.  By  Him  we  draw  near 
to  God;^  for  in  Him  we  see  the  reality  which  corre- 
sponds to,  and  fulfils,  our  highest  conception  of  a 
supreme  excellence;  more  than  fulfils,  as  the  excel- 
lence of  God  exceeds  the  compass  of  man's  mind. 

^  To  understand  the  meaning  of  an  expression  by  no  means 
implies  power  to  comprehend  that  meaning,  even  in  finite  matters. 
We  understand  the  expression  "  a  thousand  millions,"  but  who  can 
image  to  his  mind  that  number  of  units  ? 

^  Exodus,  iii,  13-15. 

^  St.  John,  i,  I,  2,  14,  18;  iii,  16,  18;   i  St.  John,  iv,  9. 

*  Hebrews,  i,  3.  ^  St.  John,  v,  26. 

®  Hebrews,  iv,  14-16;  vii,  18-19,  ^5;  x,  19-22.  Ephesians,  ii,  18. 


POWER  21 


He  becomes  to  us  our  standard  for  attainment,  our 
perfect  example,  all  sufficing  to  our  nature's  demand 
for  One  to  love. 

Jesus  Christ  is  all  this,  all  that  the  word  "  motive" 
impHes;  but  He  is  more.  There  is  in  Him,  in  His 
Being,  that  which  can  be  transmitted  to  us  as  power; 
a  vital  force,  which,  springing  from  Him,  Who  has 
the  life  in  Himself,^  can  be  communicated  to  us,  who 
in  ourselves  have  not  life  ^  but  only  the  possibilities 
thereof.  So  it  is  written  of  Him,  specifically,  "the 
last  Adam  became  a  life-giving  Spirit."  ^  Thus  the 
very  love  wherewith  we  love  Him  is  communicated 
to  us,  depends  on  this  union  with  Him.  Communi- 
cated by  communion,  allied  words;  communion  in 
its  widest  sense;  of  intellect,  of  heart,  of  speaking 
and  of  hearing,  of  asking  and  of  teaching,  of  reciprocal 
affection.  Of  this  interchange,  —  "I  in  you  and  you 
in  Me,"  ^  to  use  His  own  words,  —  the  Holy  Com- 
munion, the  Supper  of  the  Lord,  is  the  highest  ex- 
pression and  continuous  channel.  It  is  the  perpetual 
transmission  of  the  Life  of  Christ  Himself  This 
again,  in  repeated  definition,  is  The  Life  of  the 
Christian,  —  a  life  hid  with  Christ  in  God.  Motive 
and  Power;  in  these  comprehensive  words,  which 
admit,  and  indeed  in  the  end  require,  large  expansion, 
we  have  what  Jesus  Christ  is  to  us. 

Whereby  shall  we  know  this  I  The  question  is 
fair;  for  in  order  that  Christ  may  be  to  us  all  this. 
He  makes  upon  us  demands,  the  grounds  for  which 

^  St.  John,  V,  26.  ^  Ibid.,  vi,  53  (Revised  V.). 

^  I  Corinthians,  xv,  22,  45-49.     Romans,  v,  14,  15. 
*  St.  John,  XV,  4-7;  vi,  56. 


22  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

it  is  prudent  to  inquire.  His  yoke  is  easy  and  His 
burden  is  light;  ^  but  they  are  easy  and  Hght  only  by 
comparison  with  those  of  which  He  relieves  us,  and 
to  them  who  by  obedience  have  learned  to  bear 
and  in  Him  have  received  strength.  To  forsake  all 
and  follow  Him,  to  bring  every  thought  into  captiv- 
ity to  Christ,^  are  no  light  sacrifice,  no  small  effort. 
The  beginnings  are  hard,  the  continuance  is  hard, 
the  surrenders  are  great.  The  reward  is  distant, 
though  it  does  not  all  lie  beyond  the  grave.  Those 
who  have  tried  Him  assure  us  of  the  truth  of  the 
promise,  and  such  evidence,  the  testimony  of  ex- 
perience, is  much,  but  it  is  a  testimony  of  things 
unseen,  though  felt;  it  cannot  be  demonstrated  to 
an  inquirer.  Experience  is  not  transferable;  and 
ere  we  accept  the  witness  of  others  to  that  which  we 
cannot  test  before  we  have  made  our  surrenders,  it 
is  reasonable  that  we  ask  for  evidence  which  can  be 
brought  to  the  bar  of  such  judgment  as  we  now 
possess. 

A  treatise  on  Christian  evidences  is  not  here  in 
place  nor  in  question.  What  is  here  wanted  is  a 
reasonable  assurance  for  a  practical  action;  for  the 
moral  choice  called  Faith;  for  taking  the  step  of 
complying  with  Christ's  requirements  in  order 
thereby  to  obtain  His  promise,  —  The  Life  of  the 
Christian.^  In  considering  such  reasons  as  will  be 
offered,  we  should  first  remember  three  things. 

I.  Evidence  is  not  proof.    Evidence  is  the  circum- 

^  St.  Matthew,  xi,  29,  30.  ^  2  Corinthians,  x,  5. 

3  St.  John,  iii,  16;  v,  21-24,  40;  vi,  39,  40,  54;  x,  7-16,  27,  28; 
xi,  25,  26. 


POWER  23 


stance,  or  circumstances,  presented  to  a  person  with 
a  view  to  establishing  in  his  mind  the  assurance  that 
a  certain  statement  is  true,  or  that  a  certain  thing  has 
happened.  If  the  conviction  is  produced,  the  evi- 
dence becomes  proof  to  the  particular  man;  to  an- 
other person  it  may  not  produce  conviction,  and 
hence  to  him  is  not  proof.  Conviction  therefore 
depends  in  part  upon  the  person,  —  his  habit  of 
mind,  the  prepossessions  of  his  will,  his  candor, 
power  of  perception,  of  weighing  evidence.  For  this 
reason  even  scientific  men,  who  deal  with  things  which 
can  be  tested  by  the  senses,  may  and  do  disagree 
as  to  the  explanation  of  those  things.  Their  convic- 
tions, derived  from  the  same  facts,  differ  as  to  the 
origin  or  manner  by  w^hich  the  facts  come  about.  To 
one  man  they  indicate  one  thing,  to  another  another; 
while  a  third  may  content  himself  with  saying,  "I  do 
not  know."  Accordingly,  in  considering  Christian 
evidences,  much  will  depend  upon  the  manner  of 
man  the  hearer  is,  the  spirit  in  which  he  approaches 
the  question,  his  willingness  to  use  necessary  means 
prescribed  by  Christ,  such  as  prayer.  Herein  again 
we  see  the  outcropping  of  a  real  responsibility.  So 
lofty  is  the  ethical  standard  set  by  Christ,  so  perfect 
the  beauty  of  His  Character  as  narrated  to  us,  that 
one  ought  to  wish  that  He  might  be  shown  to  be 
that  which  He  claims,  and  we  need :  the  perfect 
object  sought  by  love ;  the  Unseen  God  made  mani- 
fest in  the  flesh ;  the  fulfillment,  not  merely  of  ethical 
aspiration,  but  of  the  heart's  need  to  adore  a  Person, 
The  inquirer  must  bring  with  him,  not  credulity 
indeed,  but  good  will  towards  a  great  good. 


24  THE   LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

2.  Evidence  which  would  be  quite  inadequate  to 
hang  a  man,  or  to  condemn  him  to  imprisonment, 
may  be  sufficient  to  justify  action;  nay,  to  compel 
action.  Life  abounds  in  situations  where  men  must 
make  a  choice,  must  act  in  one  direction  or  another, 
upon  imperfect  information.  This,  again,  is  one  of 
the  conditions  upon  which  even  our  common  daily 
life  is  offered  to  us.  In  such  cases  the  decision  reached 
is  essentially  an  act  of  faith,  of  belief;  of  conviction, 
more  or  less  assured,  that  the  situation,  so  far  as 
indications  go,  demands  the  action  (or  inaction) 
taken. 

But  note  that,  when  such  imposed  conclusion  is 
reached,  there  follows  often  the  need  of  a  very  high 
moral  exertion,  of  an  act  of  the  will;  that,  namely, 
of  giving  one's  self  over  to  be  possessed  by  the  decision, 
to  act  as  though  it  were  certainty.  Alternatives  and 
hesitations  are  to  be  dismissed  out  of  mind.  This 
is  Faith,  even  when  exercised  in  other  than  religious 
matters.  It  is  conspicuously  required  in  military 
conduct,  where  the  unknown  quantities  are  gravest, 
most  appalling.  It  is  a  high  military  virtue,  to  which 
in  its  perfection  few  attain;  one  chief  factor  in  mili- 
tary success  or  unsuccess.  In  this  is  seen  an  instance 
of  the  kinship  between  the  standards  of  the  soldier 
and  the  Christian.  It  is  no  misnomer  to  speak  of 
Christianity  as  militant. 

3.  To  this  the  Christian  is  bound  to  add  that  the 
conviction  which  we  call  Faith  depends  also  upon 
the  cooperation  of  God ;  or,  as  we  say,  of  the  Holy 
Ghost.     Faith  is  a  gift  from  God ;  ^    but  it  is  a  gift 

^  Ephesians,  ii,  8,  9.     St.  John,  vi,  44-46,  65. 


POWER  25 


which  will  certainly  be  given  to  any  one  who  ap- 
proaches with  a  candid  wish  to  give  himself  to  Christ, 
upon  reasonable  evidence  of  the  truth  of  His  Being 
and  Message.^  In  Faith  there  is  God's  part  and 
man's  part.  The  man  must  be  willing  to  accept  the 
condition  upon  which  the  Life  of  the  Christian  is 
offered:  "We  walk  by  Faith,  not  by  sight."  He 
must  be  willing,  that  is,  to  act  upon  a  conclusion 
which  falls  short  of  absolute  demonstration,  but 
which  is  to  him  reasonably  probable;  and  as  Hfe 
passes  he  will  be  content  with  an  assurance  that  grows 
with  years  and  with  "walking,"  —  the  assurance  from 
experience,  —  for  which  in  the  end  he  may  be  able  to 
give  no  other  account  than  that  it  has  been  wrought 
in  him.  It  is  upon  religious  experience  that  the 
clear  and  penetrating  intellect  of  Pascal  ultimately 
based  belief,  as  does  Science  upon  experiment  and 
observation. 

The  demand  for  Faith  may  seem  unreasonable, 
but  on  the  contrary  it  has  the  noblest  reason.  Con- 
sider that  the  object  which  Christ  has  proposed  to 
Himself  is  the  deliverance  of  man's  nature  from  the 
power  of  sin,  a  power  known  to  us  all  by  our  experi- 
ence of  the  evil  which  is  in  us.  His  Name  shall  be 
called  Jesus  —  Saviour  —  because  He  shall  save  His 
people  from  their  sins?  Such  deliverance  —  which 
in  common  phrase  we  name  salvation  —  cannot  be 
effected  by  coercion,  nor  by  bribery.  Could  the  full 
ultimate  suffering  and  degradation,  to  which  sin  in 
the  long  ages  will  conduct  us,  be  manifest  to  our 
eyes,  our  free  will  would  be  coerced;  God  would 
^  St.  John,  vii,  17.  ^  g^.   Matthew,  i,  21. 


26  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

become  to  us  as  the  human  persecutors  who  times 
without  number  have  trodden  down  rebellious  wills 
by  terror  of  immediate  consequences.  In  like  man- 
ner, could  the  excellences  of  Heaven  be  seen  as 
we  see  now  the  objects  of  earthly  ambition,  man's 
will  might  be  bribed  to  struggle  for  the  reward,  as  it 
now  is  for  earthly  enjoyment,  power,  fame,  or  wealth. 
In  either  such  case,  choice,  if  the  word  be  not  a  mock- 
ery, would  not  be  between  right  and  wrong,  —  that 
is,  moral,  —  but  between  personal  well  and  ill  being. 
The  punishment  and  the  reward  have  indeed  both 
been  revealed;  but  to  faith,  not  to  sight.  He  who 
does  not  accept  the  testimony  of  Christ  has  of  them 
no  assurance,  does  not  believe  in  them.  He  who  ac- 
cepts believes,  not  because  he  has  seen,  but  because 
he  believes  Christ's  word.  And  even  to  the  believer, 
in  the  general,  the  expectation  of  the  reward  and 
punishment  is  one  of  the  least  of  the  motives  that 
sway.  This  is  shown  by  the  small  practical  effect 
the  fear  of  hell  has  produced  upon  men  who  none 
the  less  had  a  very  real  belief  in  it.  It  has  influenced 
but  little  the  course  of  history.  Men's  wills  practically 
have  been  free  to  choose  right  or  wrong,  unsoHcited 
by  the  issues  of  eternity.  It  was  only  fair,  and  there- 
fore necessary,  that  these  should  be  revealed,  for 
they  are  a  part  of  the  decision.  Accordingly,  Christ 
Himself  has  revealed  them  in  striking  phrase,  yet 
not  in  such  wise  as  to  coerce  or  bribe  the  will,  but  to 
leave  it  free  to  act  by  Faith  in  making  moral  choice, 
which  choice  is  Himself.     Follow  Me.^ 

^  St.  Matthew,  iv,   18-22;    x,  38;    xvi,  24.      St.  John,  xxi, 
19-22. 


POWER  27 


Moreover,  let  it  be  remembered  that  while  the  will 
is  thus  left  free  to  choose,  under  the  sole  impulse  of 
Faith  in  Christ,  there  is  not  any  lack  of  demonstra- 
tion concerning  the  merits  of  the  conduct  of  life,  of 
the  Christian  pattern,  the  Life  of  Christ,  in  Christ, 
and  for  Christ,  which  each  man  is  to  choose  or  to 
reject.  Its  excellence  is  evident  to  all  men,  acknowl- 
edged by  all.  It  is  only  concerning  the  motive  to  it 
that  uncertainty  is  so  far  permitted  that  man  may 
bring  thereto,  to  the  service  of  God,  the  offering  of  a 
free  heart;  free  from  motives  lower  than  those  of 
Faith  and  Hope  and  Love. 

Thus  freedom  is  secured  to  man  in  his  highest  and 
purest  choice,  which  is  not  that  between  good  and 
evil  for  himself,  but  between  Christ  and  Self.  This 
is  a  choice  between  Persons  and  between  Wills; 
which  shall  be  the  Master,  which  shall  control  the 
life.  As  Christ  while  here  on  earth  veiled  His  Divine 
personality  under  the  likeness  of  man's  flesh,  so  now 
that  Personality,  the  motive  of  choice,  continues 
veiled  except  to  the  eye  of  Faith.  Not  to  a  faith  with- 
out reason,  nor  without  reasons;  but  which  yet 
remains  Faith,  because  its  reasons  fall  short  of  that 
ocular,  positive  demonstration,  to  which  the  Bible 
accurately  applies  the  contrasted  physical  term,  — 
Sight.  ^  Belief  without  reasons  is  not  faith,  but  credu- 
Hty.  Belief  upon  demonstration  of  the  senses  is  not 
faith,  but  sight,  —  perception  and  acceptance  of  a 
scientific   fact.^     Faith   has   reasons,   although   they 

^  2  Corinthians,  iv,  18;  v,  7.     St.  John,  xx,  24-29. 
^  Sight  in  its  broad  sense  covers  all  the  organs  of  perception  by 
which  phenomena  are  recognized. 


28  THE   LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

are  reasons  which  fall  short  of  ocular  demonstration ; 
but  it  possesses  also  conviction,  by  the  working  of  the 
power  of  God  upon  the  faculties  of  man.  He  that 
believeth  hath  the  witness  in  himself,  writes  St.  John.^ 
The  Holy  Ghost  shall  bear  witness  of  me,^  said  our 
Lord.  The  highest  historical  expression  of  faith, 
St.  Peter's  ''Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living 
God,"  elicited  the  Master's  comment:  Blessed  art 
thou,  Simon  Bar- Jonah  !  for  flesh  and  blood  (the 
senses  or  the  brain)  have  not  revealed  this  unto  thee, 
but  My  Father  which  is  in  Heaven.^ 

St.  Peter  had  reasons,  and  he  besides  had  con- 
viction. The  reasons  were  the  human  side  of  his 
faith;  he  had  chosen  Christ,  lived  with  Christ,  com- 
muned with  Christ,  and  pondered  what  he  saw  and 
heard.  Such  a  procedure  constitutes  a  chain  of 
conduct  and  of  growing  perception,  conscious  or 
subconscious,  tending  towards  an  inference.  It 
is  watchfulness,  seeking,  observing,  learning,  ex- 
periment; the  due  use  of  means;  in  method  cognate 
to  that  of  science.  St.  Peter  had,  more  or  less,  ful- 
filled the  conditions  of  the  moral  choice.  He  had 
"walked"  with  Christ;  and  to  him  came  the  re- 
ward —  perception  and  conviction,  a  revelation 
from  God.  Here  are  stated  the  two  sides  of  Faith ; 
and  that  in  respect  of  what  is,  and  must  ever  re- 
main, the  briefest  and  yet  most  consummate  expres- 
sion of  the  Faith  of  the  Christian,  the  foundation 
stone,  the  seed-root,  in  the  Life  of  the  Christian. 
Let  it  be  observed  that  "Blessed"  is  a  condition  of 

^  I  St.  John,  V,  10.  ^  St.  John,  xv,  26. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xvi,  15-17.     St.  Mark,  viii,  27-29. 


POWER  29 


reception,  not  of  achievement;  passive,  not  active; 
though  doubtless  bestov^ed  in  recognition  of  past 
action. 

The  Christian  of  to-day  has  also  his  reasons. 
They  are  not  the  result  of  personal  observation,  sus- 
tained throughout  the  Redeemer's  life  on  earth,  as 
was  the  case  v^ith  St.  Peter.  Yet  they  are  strictly 
analogous;  not  the  same,  but  like.  Instead  of  ob- 
servation, they  rest  upon  testimony,  as  does  every 
historical  fact  anteceding  the  personal  observation 
of  any  generation  living  upon  earth.  Like  St.  Peter, 
though  not  in  the  same  way,  Christians  of  to-day 
have  "walked"  with  Christ;  not  as  he  did,  seeing 
His  actions,  but  having  felt  His  call  they  have  walked 
with  Him  in  the  story  of  His  Life,  which  they  have 
studied  day  by  day,  till  known,  not  by  mind  only, 
but  by  heart.  They  have  not  heard  His  Voice,  as 
St.  Peter  daily  did;  but  they  have  read  what  He 
said,  and  pondered  the  beauty  of  His  precepts,  the 
ethical  perfectness  of  which  has  compelled  the 
homage  even  of  a  disobedient  world.  We  have  not 
seen  the  works,  concerning  which  the  Christ  Him- 
self ere  His  Death  said,  "If  I  had  not  done  among 
them  the  works  that  none  other  man  did,  they  had 
not  had  sin;"  ^  but  we  have  the  evidence  of  the 
one  subsequent  surpassing  exhibition  of  the  Power 
that  wrought  those  works,  —  His  Resurrection  from 
the  dead. 

These  are  our  reasons :  His  Life,  His  Words,  His 
Resurrection.  Concerning  these,  the  first  two  are 
as  one;  His  Words  are  the  echo  of  His  Life.  Out 
^  St.  John,  XV,  24. 


30  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

of  the  abundance  of  the  heart  the  mouth  indeed 
speaketh;^  but  of  Him  we  have  the  record  that 
what  He  taught,  He  did.  So  lofty  are  His  teach- 
ings, so  perfect  the  standard,  that  the  most  sub- 
stantial, though  untenable,  criticism  upon  them  is 
that  they  pass  the  possible  for  man.  Yet  His  Life 
witnesses  that  man  has  once  reached  the  standard; 
and  His  Life  is  the  Life  of  the  Christian,  the  Power 
which  worketh  in  us,^  carrying  the  assurance  that 
in  the  end  the  follower  shall  attain  where  His  Master 
led.  "Every  one  that  is  perfected  shall  be  as  His 
Master."  ^  It  may  require  eternity  to  complete  the 
process,  to  which  certainly  no  compass  of  man's 
life  on  earth  is  sufficient. 

In  such  a  prospect  is  there  nothing  that  demands 
of  the  hearer  a  desire  to  believe  .?  a  desire  to  find 
such  an  One,  to  know  such  an  One,  to  love  such  an 
One }  a.  desire  to  be  like  Him,  not  because  we  shall 
have  pleasure  in  our  own  perfection,  but  because 
our  perfection  shall  please  such  an  One  as  He  is, 
and  do  works  for  God  and  man  such  as  He  wrought  ^ 
Can  we  without  fault  consider  as  indifferent  the 
estabhshing  with  Him  the  relations  of  mutual  affec- 
tion, which  shall  introduce  into  our  lives  steadfast 
power,  such  as  that  of  which  we  see  certain  limited 
illustrations  continually  reflected  in  imperfect  human 
nature  ?  The  love  of  mother  for  child,  of  wife  for 
husband,  of  daughter  for  parent,  who  so  unhappy 
as  not  to   have   seen   something  of  the   power   and 

^  St.  Matthew,  xii,  33-37;  xv,  18.  St.  Luke,  vi,  45.  St.  James, 
iii.  2-12. 

^  Ephesians,  i,  17-20.  ^  St.  Luke,  vi,  40. 


POWER  31 


sweetness  these  bring  into  life  ?  shown  not  in  feel- 
ing merely,  but  in  action  in  its  most  strenuous  form, 
endurance  through  good  and  ill.  And  in  what  rest 
that  power  and  sweetness  ?  Not  in  being  loved, 
but  in  loving.  Not  in  the  self,  even  in  the  form  of 
self-perfection,  but  in  Another,  even  in  Him  Who 
loved  him  and  gave  Himself  for  him,^ — the  full  story 
of  the  Cross  from  His  birth  to  His  rising  again. 

Hereunto  Faith  points  us;  and  it  is  with  the  pre- 
possession towards  such  a  condition,  of  loving  such 
a  Being,  with  the  desire  to  believe,  that  a  man  should 
approach  the  crucial  question  of  the  Resurrection  of 
Jesus  Christ;  the  one  supreme  evidence  conceded 
to  the  senses,  the  evidence  of  Sight,  upon  which  the 
two  chief  Christian  leaders,  St.  Paul  and  St.  Peter, 
rest  the  foundation  truth  of  Christianity.^  That 
truth  is,  that  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Son  of  God  with 
Power,  so  proclaimed  by  the  Resurrection  from  the 
dead.^  Between  the  life  of  Sight  based  upon  the 
evidence  of  the  senses,  and  the  life  of  Faith  resting 
in  things  unseen,  the  Resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ 
stands,  laying  a  hand  on  each,  bridging  the  chasm, 
even  as  the  two  natures.  Divine  and  human,  are 
joined  in  His  Personality,  which  lays  hand  on  God 
and  Man,  uniting  them  by  an  unseverable  bond; 
the  Daysman  whom  Job  in  his  trouble  sought  in 
vain.* 

It  is  morally  right,  and  incumbent  upon  each 
man,  that  he  should  consider  this  assertion  can- 
didly, according  to  the  powers  of  reason  possessed 

^  Galatians,  ii,  20.  ^  Acts,  ii,  22-32,-  xiil,  30-37. 

3  Romans,  i,  4.  *  Job,  ix,  32,  33. 


32  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

by  him;  that  the  desirableness  of  the  result  should 
not  be  permitted  to  blind  his  judgment  or  force  his 
convictions.  But  his  deliberation  must  be  gov- 
erned by  the  recognition  that  the  issue  at  stake  is 
not  one  of  merely  speculative  curiosity,  but  of  im- 
mediate vital  importance  to  the  individual  and  to 
the  race.  It  is  not  morally  permissible  to  main- 
tain an  attitude  of  indifference  towards  statements 
such  as  the  following :  that  there  not  only  has  been, 
but  is  now,  risen  from  the  dead,  actually  existent  as 
a  working  Power  among  men,  such  an  One  as  we 
know  Jesus  Christ  to  have  been;  that  we  can  enter 
into  relations  with  Him  of  loving  and  being  loved; 
that  He  may  be,  at  our  will,  a  present  factor  of 
almighty  power  in  our  lives.  Indifference  is  for- 
bidden; for  the  result  of  Faith  has  been  to  the 
race  of  Man  great  and  beneficent.  Upon  the  truth 
of  these  propositions,  demonstrated  to  them,  mil- 
lions of  men  through  nineteen  centuries  have  rested 
their  conduct  of  life;  not  merely  dying  in  hope,  but 
living  in  devotion,  in  self-surrender.  The  motive 
and  purpose  of  life  has  been  summed  up  to  them 
in  the  loving  words,  "To  be  with  Christ;"  ^  here 
in  spirit  and  in  struggle,  —  "Whom,  having  not 
seen,  ye  love,"  ^  hereafter  in  present  sight  and 
closest  service.  Love  such  that  not  even  for  that 
present  sight  would  they  quit  His  work  below  be- 
fore He  calls.  "To  depart  and  be  with  Christ  is 
far  better,"  says  St.  Paul.  "Nevertheless,  to  abide 
in  the  flesh  is  more  needful  "  for  the  work  Christ 
wants  of  him,  and  he  is  content  to  wait. 

^  Philippians,  i,  23.  ^  i  St.  Peter,  i,  8. 


POWER  33 


To  them  who  have  learned  thus  to  regard  Jesus 
Christ,  the  promises  have  meant  not  a  Hfe  of  glori- 
fied ease,  such  as  a  luxurious  imagination  has  pic- 
tured Heaven,  but  the  introduction  into  their  being 
of  a  motive  force,  the  power  of  love,  issuing  from 
God  in  Christ,  in  the  strength  of  which  there  shall 
be  wrought  in  them  a  love  to  Him  which  shall  ac- 
complish His  great  purpose,  for  which  He  died; 
even  likeness  to  Him,  which  is  perfection.  "I  count 
all  things  but  loss,"  says  St.  Paul,  "for  the  excel- 
lency of  the  knowledge  of  Christ  Jesus  my  Lord ;  for 
Whom  I  have  suffered  the  loss  of  all  things,  and  do 
count  them  but  dung,  that  I  may  win  Christ,  and  be 
found  in  Him;  .  .  .  that  I  m^y  know  Him,  and  the 
power  of  His  Resurrection,  and  the  fellowship  of 
His  sufferings,  being  made  conformable  unto  His 
death,  if  by  any  means  I  might  attain  unto  the  res- 
urrection of  the  dead;"  ^  that  is,  unto  likeness  to 
Him  glorified.  When  I  shall  wake  up  after  Thy 
likeness,  I  shall  be  satisfied  with  it.^ 

Not  indeed  that  we,  so  weak  to  bear,  may  affect 
carelessness  about  environment,  indifference  to  the 
surroundings,  whatever  they  be,  that  constitute 
Heaven ;  that  we  should  think  scorn  of  that  pleasant 
land ;  ^  but  that,  above  all,  that  whereunto  we  are 
supremely  called  is  to  love  God,  to  enter  into  pos- 
session of  a  faculty  which  in  its  inevitable  outcome 
constitutes  the  greatest  happiness  and  the  utmost 
motive  of  which  God  or  man  is  capable.  God  is 
Love;   the   follower  of  Jesus  Christ    also    shall   be 

*  Philippians,  iii,  8-1 1.  ^  Psalm,  xvii,  i6  (Psalter). 

^  Psalm,  cvi,  24  (Psalter). 


34  THE   LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

love.  God  in  His  measure,  which  is  infinite;  man, 
each  according  to  the  measure  of  his  personaHty 
and  service,  as  star  difFereth  from  star  in  glory. 
This  is  our  living  hope,  unto  v^hich,  to  use  the  words 
of  St.  Peter,  we  are  begotten  by  the  Resurrection  of 
Jesus  Christ.^ 

The  Resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  from  the  dead, 
as  transmitted  to  us  by  those  who  assert  that  they 
saw  Him,  that  they  did  eat  and  drink  with  Him  after 
He  rose  from  the  dead,^  although  wrought  by  Spir- 
itual Power,  is  a  fact  in  the  physical  order.  It  was 
tested,  so  the  witnesses  report,  by  the  senses  of  sight, 
hearing,  and  touch.  It  must  be  clearly  kept  in  mind 
that  the  Apostles  of  Jesus  Christ  led  their  laborious 
and  hazardous  lives,  ending  for  the  most  part  in 
death  by  violence  for  His  sake,  and  laid  the  founda- 
tions of  the  mighty  edifice  of  Christianity  which 
endures  to  this  day,  not  in  the  strength  of  certain 
opinions,  which  they  believed,  but  in  the  assurance 
that  they  themselves  had  repeatedly  seen  Jesus 
Christ,  risen  from  the  dead.  "Witnesses  of  His 
Resurrection"  is  their  one  commission,  and  the 
key  note  of  preaching  for  the  Church  they  founded 
in  His  Name.^  This  their  assertion  is  from  its  nature 
historic  fact,  —  or  falsehood ;  but  unlike  most  his- 
toric incidents  of  the  past,  the  truth  of  it  is  not  to  us 
morally  indifferent.  Upon  its  truth  or  falsity,  as  it 
appears   to   us,  we   must   make   a   moral   decision; 

^  I  St.  Peter,  i,  3. 

2  Acts,  X,  41.     St.  Luke,  xxiv,  41-43.     St.  John,  xxi,  12-15. 

3  Acts,  i,  8,  22;  ii,  24-36;  iii,  15;  iv,  2,  10,  20,  33;  v,  30-32; 
X,  38-43;  xiii,  29-39;  xvii,  3,  31;  xxiii,  6;  xxiv,  15,  21;  xxvi,  6-8, 
22,  23. 


POWER  35 


whether  to  accept  Christ,  with  all  the  promises  in- 
volved in  His  being  what  they  said,  of  which  His 
Resurrection  is  the  offered  proof,  or  to  reject  Him 
as  being  no  more  than  a  man  of  consummate  excel- 
lence of  character,  long  since  dead,  to  whom  we 
owe  naught  beyond  a  tribute  of  admiration.  Thus 
rejected.  He  can  no  longer  add  to  life  anything 
beyond  the  usefulness  of  His  teaching;  which,  more- 
over, possesses  no  authority  beyond  our  own  ap- 
proval. Where  it  appears  extravagant  or  faulty,  it 
can  thus  carry  no  weight  of  authority  due  to  the 
Person  of  the  teacher. 

If  what  has  before  been  said  as  to  the  Life  of  the 
Christian,  its  present  power  and  its  future  promise, 
be  accepted  as  a  just  statement  of  Christian  teaching, 
the  choice  here  to  be  made,  dependent  upon  the 
acceptance  or  rejection  of  the  Resurrection,  is  no  mere 
matter  of  personal  predilection.  It  is  the  acceptance 
or  rejection  of  a  personal  excellence,  to  be  wrought 
in  the  character,  not  to  be  had  on  any  other  terms 
than  those  proffered  by  Christ.  And  character  is 
destiny.  As  the  man  pronounces  his  decision,  he 
chooses  the  better  or  the  worse.  He  is  not  choosing 
or  rejecting  a  personal  advantage,  even  though  that 
advantage  be  Heaven;  he  is  choosing  or  rejecting 
Jesus  Christ,  and  with  Christ  the  only  power  able 
to  fulfil  in  his  personality  the  purpose  for  which  God 
brought  him  into  being.  There  is  no  other  way. 
There  is  none  other  name  under  Heaven  given  among 
men  whereby  we  may  be  saved;  ^  and  that  name,  — 
Jesus,  Saviour,  —  let  it  be  kept  clearly  in  view,  was 
^  Acts,  Iv,  12. 


36  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

ascribed  to  Him  because  He  should  save  His  people 
from  their  sins.^  His  name  expresses  His  Office;  to 
those  who  will  receive  Him,  His  Office  insures  His 
mission.  To  them  gives  He  power  to  become  the 
sons  of  God.^ 

In  the  failure  to  recognize  the  extreme  solemnity  of 
this  decision,  a  failure  which  takes  no  account  of  the 
moral  element,  but  sees  in  it  merely  an  intellectual 
process  of  weighing  evidence  and  striking  a  balance, 
involving  no  responsibihty  for  consequences,  such  as 
we  see  to  follow  upon  other  mistakes  in  life,  we  may 
probably  find  the  explanation  of  much  indifference, 
under  the  specious  guise  of  tolerant  opinion,  among 
the  nominally  Christian,  as  well  as  among  the  unbe- 
lieving; but  should  the  Christian  be  tempted,  by  the 
misleading  term  "tolerance,"  to  condone  the  non- 
belief —  rather  than  unbelief — which  the  majority 
of  mankind  show  towards  the  Christian  message,  he 
should  recognize  that  tolerance  of  that  character  is 
not  the  attitude  of  his  Exemplar.  While  ever  mani- 
festing towards  the  individual  the  infinite  patience 
of  the  Godhead,  Christ's  word  is  clear  concerning 
the  general  fact  of  indifference,  of  non-belief.  "The 
light  is  come  into  the  world,"  and  failure  to  recognize 
it  proceeds  ultimately  from  the  w411,  in  which  resides 
the  moral  value  of  action,  or  non-action;  "men  love 
darkness  rather  than  light,  because  their  deeds  are 
evil."  These  conditions,  united  in  His  phrase,  con- 
stitute His  judgment,  which  is  associated  to  them, 
and  pronounced  explicitly  by  Him:  "He  that  be- 
lieveth  not  hath  been  judged  already  [by  the  very 
^  St.  Matthew,  i,  21.  ^  St.  John,  i,  12,  13. 


POWER  37 


fact  of  that  unbelief],  because  he  hath  not  beheved 
on  the  Name  of  the  only-begotten  Son  of  God.  And 
this  is  the  judgment,  that  the  light  is  come  into  the 
world,"  etc.  Let  it  be  noted,  too,  that  these  stern 
words  follow  directly  upon  that  declaration  which 
has  ever  been  considered  the  fullest  compact  expres- 
sion of  the  Gospel  message  of  Divine  Love :  God  so 
loved  the  World  that  He  gave  His  Only-Begotten  Son, 
to  the  end  that  all  that  believe  in  Him  should  not 
perish,  but  have  eternal  life.^ 

Indifference  reproduces,  is  but  another  result,  of 
the  standpoint  which  sees  in  Faith  merely  an  intel- 
lectual condition,  without  moral  factor.  In  conse- 
quence, considering  the  evidence  of  the  Resurrection 
to  fall  short  of  absolute  demonstration,  liberty  is  felt 
to  reject  the  fact,  without  any  consideration  of  the 
moral  element  involved  in  the  rejection.  And  this 
is  doubly  serious ;  because  the  testimony  to  the  Resur- 
rection is  sufficient,  intellectually,  to  establish  any 
ordinary  historical  incident.  Rejection  proceeds  not 
on  the  ground  of  evidence  defective  in  itself,  but  of 
evidence  considered  defective  to  prove  so  extraordi- 
nary, so  unparalleled,  an  occurrence.  As  an  intel- 
lectual proposition,  therefore,  rejection  rests  upon 
the  inference  that  that  which  never  has  happened 
in  any  other  observed  instance,  or  which  is  contrary 
to  those  sustained  sequences  of  cause  and  effect 
known  to  us  as  the  laws  of  nature,  cannot  have  hap- 
pened in  a  particular  instance.  While  admitting  the 
tremendous  force  of  prepossession  founded  upon  an 
experience  believed  to  be  unvarying,  it  must  never- 
*  St.  John,  iii,  16-21. 


38  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

theless  be  said  that  this  position  is  untenable;  it  is  a 
non  sequitur.  That  which  never  has  occurred  may 
occur.  This  Earth  has  endured  for  —  let  us  say  — 
milHons  of  years ;  yet  it  is  untenable  to  affirm  that 
it  may  not  one  day  —  to-morrow  —  be  dissolved. 
From  time  to  time  the  skies  above  us  bear  witness 
to  our  eyes  of  catastrophes,  to  which  such  dissolu- 
tion of  our  planet  would  be  but  an  incident.  In  the 
stars  themselves  appear  signs  that  there  impends  ever 
over  this  planet  the  possibility  of  a  consummation  by 
fire,  such  as  was  predicted  by  Christ  and  His  apostles. 
Or,  if  the  force  of  prepossession,  engendered  by 
this  too  soHd  Earth,  prevent  our  feeling  the  possi- 
bility of  this  proposition  concerning  'its  future,  let 
us  ponder  for  a  moment  an  ever  present  mystery  of 
the  past,  —  the  origin  of  the  material  Universe  as  re- 
vealed to  us  by  the  telescope.  Concerning  this  there 
are  two  possible  conceptions,  one  of  which  is  inevit- 
ably true.  I,  the  Universe,  although  in  perpetual 
change,  has  always  existed,  has  had  no  beginning; 
or,  2,  it  came  into  existence,  not  necessarily  in  its 
present  development,  but  under  some  form  or  other, 
at  a  definite  period,  however  remote.  Of  these  two, 
the  first  makes  upon  imagination  a  demand  to  which 
it  is  unequal;  a  circumstance  which  by  no  means 
proves  that  the  conception  is  untrue.  The  second, 
summarily  stated,  means  that  at  one  instant  the 
Universe  was  not,  while  at  a  near  subsequent  instant 
it  was ;  not  indeed  as  we  now  see  it,  but  in  some  state 
of  origin.  Now  our  imagination  can  place  us  be- 
tween these  moments;  and  having  done  so,  as  we 
gaze  on  absolute  void,  what  more  unlikely,  antecedent 


POWER  39 


to  experience,  than  that  it  should  be  filled  with  mil- 
lions of  suns  and  their  satellites.  Yet  there  they  are, 
however  improbable  such  creation  might  appear  to 
a  human  mind  existing  before  it.  Antecedently  to 
experience,  the  exceptional  resurrection  of  a  human 
body  from  physical  death  is  not  more  improbable  than 
either  conception  of  the  Universe.  Either  is  unparal- 
leled by  aught  else  known  to  us.  Yet  the  Universe 
exists;  a  fact  intrinsically  more  marvellous  than 
even  the  Resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ.  Well  might 
St.  Paul  ask.  Why  should  it  be  thought  incredible 
to  you  that  God  should  raise  the  dead  .?  ^ 

This  insufficiency  of  the  intellectual  reason  for 
rejection  makes  necessary  for  decision  to  take  into 
account  the  moral  element  —  the  moral  witness  — 
involved  in  rejecting  the  Resurrection,  and  therewith 
Christ  Himself.  And  this  the  more  so,  because  the 
intellectual  argument,  the  appeal  to  the  intelligence, 
is  extremely  strong,  when  once  the  argument  of  im- 
possibility is  put  aside.  It  may  be  asserted,  with  a 
probability  scarcely  falling  short  of  absolute  certainty, 
that  the  undeniable  historic  fact  of  Christianity,  as 
now  existing  before  our  eyes,  has  no  other  historic 
origin  than  the  particular  incident  of  the  Resurrection 
of  Jesus  Christ.  True  or  false  in  itself,  the  Apostles 
base  upon  it  alone  their  mission  to  mankind.  To 
them  it  is  not,  as  to  us  it  must  be,  a  matter  of  the 
testimony  of  others.  It  is  one  of  personal  experience 
at  first  hand.  They  themselves  have  seen,  heard, 
touched,  conversed,  eaten,  and  drunk  with  Him 
risen;  not  once  or  twice,  but  repeatedly. 
^  Acts,  xxvi,  8. 


40  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Let  there  here  be  clearly  kept  in  mind  the  dis- 
tinction between  the  matter  of  fact  of  the  Resurrec- 
tion itself,  and  the  other  matter  of  fact  that  the 
Apostles  believed,  asserted,  that  they  had  witnessed 
it.  Their  assertion,  coupled  with  the  fact  that  on 
the  strength  of  their  belief  they  dared  the  dangers 
they  did,  lived,  labored,  and  died  for  the  truth  of  it, 
and  on  this  conviction  established  a  system  which 
to  this  day  endures  substantially  unaltered,  in  teach- 
ing and  influence,  having  in  the  meantime  shaped 
the  lives  of  millions  of  individuals  and  the  standards 
of  the  nations  we  call  Christian,  —  all  this  indeed  is  a 
strong  argument  that  the  Resurrection  did  occur,  as 
stated.  As  an  argument  it  thus  has  value;  but  as  a 
fact,  an  historic  fact,  or  series  of  facts,  it  is  entirely 
distinct  from  the  Resurrection  itself.  That  the 
Apostles  so  asserted  and  so  acted  is  one  statement, 
be  it  true  or  false ;  that  Christ  did  rise  again  is  another 
and  separate  statement.  It  is  possible  to  believe  the 
first  and  reject  the  second;  although  in  such  case  it 
is  reasonable  to  demand  some  other  equally  adequate 
explanation. 

Again,  it  must  be  noted  that  the  assertions  and 
actions  of  the  Apostles  in  this  respect  are  wholly 
within  the  sphere  of  ordinary  historical  evidence. 
What  they  said  and  did,  and  whether  they  so  said 
and  did,  are  to  be  judged  by  the  same  canons  of 
criticism  that  apply  to  the  sayings  and  doings  of  any 
other  characters  in  history.  There  is  in  these  nothing 
of  what  we  call  the  supernatural.  The  Apostles 
affirm  as  true  something  supernatural;  but  their 
affirmation  itself  is  in  the  natural  order,  and  on  that 


POWER  41 


score  the  statement  that  they  made  it  presents  no 
difficulty  to  acceptance.  Thus  considered,  there 
can  be  little  question  that  conviction  of  the  Resur- 
rection, by  men  who  believed  themselves  to  have  had 
intercourse  with  the  Risen  Christ,  was  the  determina- 
tive factor  in  the  preaching  of  Christianity,  —  or 
rather  of  Christ;  for  the  term  Christian  and  its  deriv- 
atives are  posterior  to  the  first  preaching  that  Jesus 
is  the  Christ.  The  Apostles  preached  Christ  Cruci- 
fied and  Risen;  and  they  so  preached  Him  because, 
and  only  because,  they  believed  they  had  seen  Him 
Risen.  They  give  no  other  reason,  no  other  explana- 
tion; and  when  brought  to  the  bar  of  Jewish  judg- 
ment allege  no  other  justification  for  the  preaching 
which  subverted  Judaism  by  fulfilling  it,  and  which 
revolutionized  the  world  of  Roman  and  Greek  civili- 
zation, to  which  we  are  the  heirs.  Such  a  fact,  his- 
torically as  assured  as  any  other  fact  of  the  same 
period,  is  one  strong  argument  that  the  other  fact, 
that  of  the  Resurrection  itself,  occurred,  substantially 
as  stated.  It  is  one  great  argument  among  several. 
I  do  not  propose  to  enter  in  detail  into  the  other 
arguments  for  the  actuality  of  the  Resurrection, —  that 
Christ's  Body  did  not  see  corruption,  neither  His 
Spirit  remain  in  Hades;  that  the  two  were  united 
again  on  the  third  day.  The  affirmation  of  the 
Resurrection  is  nothing  short  of  this  double  state- 
ment. Succinctly,  these  other  arguments  are:  i, 
the  teaching  of  St.  Paul;  and,  2,  the  narratives  of 
the  incidents  attending  the  Resurrection,  as  given 
in  the  four  Gospels.  It  is  apposite  here  to  introduce 
a  remark  :  that  we  have  in  the  History  of  Christianity 


42  THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

two  related  sets  of  events,  between  which  there  is 
an  evident  chasm  that  requires  to  be  bridged.  We 
have  the  story  of  Christ's  Life  and  Teaching,  up  to 
and  including  the  Crucifixion  and  Death.  We  have 
further  the  preaching  of  the  first  Apostles,  the 
Twelve  and  St.  Paul,  and  the  entire  subsequent 
history  of  Christendom,  continuous  in  progress  to 
this  present  day.  Between  the  two  lies  a  gulf;  for 
such  it  is  —  apart  from  the  Resurrection. 

Sown  in  weakness,  are  the  facts  antecedent; 
raised  in  power,  are  the  facts  subsequent.  A  Teacher, 
lovely  in  character,  wise  with  an  inscrutable  wisdom, 
in  which  tenderness  and  insight  compete  for  pre- 
eminence; heroic  in  temperament,  but  expressly 
disclaiming  all  resort  to  force  for  propagating  His 
teaching;  a  small  band  of  followers,  irresistibly 
attracted  and  bound  by  a  personality,  the  beauty 
and  power  of  which  inspire  wild  hopes,  but  imper- 
fect comprehension;  faint  gleams  of  perception 
from  time  to  time,  as  in  St.  Peter's  confession,  flash- 
ing through  a  mist  of  perplexity  as  to  what  it  all 
actually  means;  a  gradual  gathering  of  gloom  and 
adverse  powers,  predictive  of  failure;  arrest,  trial, 
execution  of  the  Leader;  the  destruction  of  every 
formulated  expectation,  as  well  as  of  the  vague 
anticipations  of  some  great  temporal  revolution 
which  should  set  Jesus  upon  the  throne  of  Israel; 
Himself  forsaken  by  His  followers,  who,  now  that 
He  whose  Person  united  them  has  been  apparently 
destroyed,  scatter  every  man  to  his  own,  to  their 
accustomed  occupations,  as  we  all  do  in  this  sorrow- 
ful world  when  one  dear  to  us  has  been  taken  away. 


POWER  43 


The  fishing  scene  in  St.  John's  Gospel  ^  reproduces 
in  miniature  the  exact  outcome  of  the  death  of 
Christ,  had  He  not  risen;  a  result  precisely  parallel 
to  those  recalled  by  Gamaliel.^  On  Friday  the 
ministry  of  three  years  had  ended  in  disaster  and 
ignominy.  "We  trusted  that  it  had  been  He  which 
should  have  redeemed  Israel;"  ^  but  He  is  dead,  and 
the  old  authorities,  the  Roman  Pontius  Pilate,  Herod, 
the  chief  priests  and  rulers  of  Israel,  remain  in  full 
possession  of  all  that  power  which  Jesus  was  ex- 
pected to  assume. 

Hope  had  departed.  Despite  their  love  to  Him, 
the  Apostles  had  not  risen  to  the  assurance  of  His 
Resurrection.  He  had  foretold  it  to  them;  but  like 
other  sayings  it  was  for  the  time  too  hard.  The 
first  message  brought  of  it  was  to  them  as  an  idle 
tale.^  By  their  own  admission,  they  had  not  per- 
ceived in  their  own  scriptures  the  predictive  assur- 
ance that  the  Christ  must  first  suffer  death,  and 
yet  not  be  holden  of  it.^  This  dejection,  hopeless  in 
outlook,  is  historical  fact,  and  perfectly  natural. 
Equally  historical  is  the  fact  that  seven  weeks  later 
this  cowed  band  of  a  dozen  men,  backed  only  by 
a  scant  hundred  followers,®  men  and  women,  mostly 

*  Chapter  xxi.         ^  Acts,  v,  36,  37.       ^  St.  Luke,  xxiv,  21. 

*  Ihid.^  xxiv,  II.  ^  Ihid.^  xxiv,  22-26.      St. John,  xx,  9. 

®  The  conversion  of  the  three  thousand  at  Pentecost  may  be 
alleged  against  this  reckoning;  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  at 
that  early  stage  those  only  could  be  counted  on  who  had  endured 
through  the  trials  of  Holy  Week  and  Good  Friday.  The  Apostles 
within  one  week  had  heard  the  Hosannas  of  Sunday  followed  by 
the  "Crucify  Him"  of  Friday.  Many,  probably,  of  the  three 
thousand  had  echoed  both  cries. 


44  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

nameless,  confront  to  their  faces  the  rulers  who  had 
slain  their  Master;  defy  the  authority,  the  ruthless- 
ness  and  power  of  which  had  been  shown  in  the 
Crucifixion,  —  power  based  upon  a  fanatical  popu- 
lace, —  and  tax  both  mob  and  rulers  with  the  crime 
of  shedding  innocent  blood,  —  even  the  blood  of 
the  promised  Messiah.  They  fill  Jerusalem  with 
their  doctrine,  and  boldly  impute  this  Man's  blood 
to  the  Chief  Priest  and  his  associates.^ 

Their  explanation  of  this  change  is  that  He  who 
had  died  upon  the  Cross  had  risen  from  the  dead; 
that  He  had  been  with  them  for  forty  days,  giving 
instruction  for  their  future  course;  that  He  had 
"ascended  into  the  heavens"  some  ten  days  before, 
commanding  them  to  defer  any  action  till  there 
should  come  upon  them  that  which  He  called  "  Power 
from  on  high."  ^  The  one  determinative  feature 
of  all  this  is  the  Resurrection;  the  remainder  is 
detail,  however  important;  nay,  however  essential. 
The  Resurrection  is  their  one  explanation;  the 
rest  is  accessory.  Here  it  is  proper  to  add  to  the 
testimony  of  the  Twelve  the  other  witness,  —  St. 
Paul.  If  Christ  be  not  risen,  then  is  our  preach- 
ing vain ;  your  faith  is  also  vain,  and  they  who  have 
fallen  asleep  in  Christ  have  perished.  ^  If  Christ 
be  dead.  Death,  so  far  as  appears,  is  an  eternal 
sleep.*  Here  Christian  Faith  takes  its  stand,  not  in 
desperation  but  in  assurance. 

^  Acts  ii,  22-24;  iii,  13-15;  iv,  8-1 1,  13,  18-21;  v,  27-33,  4°" 
42;  vii,  51-60. 

^  St.  Luke,  xxiv,  49.    Acts,  i,  8.      ^  i  Corinthians,  xv,  12-19. 
^  Ibid.,  32. 


POWER  45 


The  Resurrection  is  the  only  explanation  the 
Apostles  gave  to  link  their  past  of  overthrow,  dis- 
may, and  utter  hopelessness  with  their  present  of 
enthusiastic  triumph,  courage,  and  confidence  of 
victory.  From  this  beginning  of  their  preaching 
to  the  present  state  of  Christendom  the  historic 
chain  of  events  is  without  break;  and  it  also  is 'in 
the  purely  natural  order,  so  far  as  outward  mani- 
festation is  concerned.  No  other  historic  explana- 
tion has  been  given  than  that  Christ  rose  again. 
Many  theories  have  been  put  forth  to  account  for 
the  imposing  series  of  events  and  influences  which 
has  been  manifested  in  the  history  of  the  Christian 
Faith,  despite  its  numerous  remissnesses;  but  they 
are  only  theories.  I  do  not  herein  affirm  that  they 
are  not  true;  I  say  only  they  are  not  historical. 
They  do  not  rest  on  evidence,  but  on  surmise,  how- 
ever ingenious.  They  remain  unimpeached  only 
by  denying  the  one  historical  evidence  available,  — 
the  account  of  the  Apostles ;  the  statements  of  those 
who  were  the  prime  agents  in  the  great  transaction 
of  starting  Christianity  on  its  course,  and  who  for 
motive,  and  power,  and  authority,  alleged  but  one 
fact,  —  that  they  were  eye-witnesses  of  His  Resurrec- 
tion. Many  men  have  died  for  their  opinions.  It 
is  unusual  to  find  twelve  men  ready  to  die  for  the 
truth  of  one  and  the  same  event,  of  which  each  one 
professes  to  be  an  eye-witness,  when  they  know  all 
along  that  they  have  not  seen  it. 

That  history  has  no  other  explanation  than  this 
for  the  recovery  of  the  followers  from  the  stunning 
eff'ect   of  the    Master's   overthrow    and    death,  —  a 


46  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

recovery  from  which  all  subsequent  Christian  his- 
tory proceeds  as  a  river  from  its  source,  —  is  to  me 
the  most  imposing  proof  of  the  truth  of  their  asser- 
tion. A  stupendous  fact  requires  of  explanation  that 
it  be  adequate.  The  Resurrection  by  itself  alone 
is  adequate  to  the  great  result;  and  it  alone  is  as 
an  explanation  historical.  It  is  not  easy  to  over- 
state the  weight  of  two  such  factors,  —  adequate  and 
absence  of  alternative,  —  in  passing  judgment  upon 
the  truth  of  any  event  in  history. 

The  existence  of  the  Christian  Church  in  that 
broadest  sense,  "the  blessed  company  of  all  faithful 
people,"  ^  divided  though  they  miserably  be  on 
minor  points,  but  one  nevertheless  in  the  common 
faith  in  the  Person  of  the  Risen  Christ,  one  in  the 
common  hope  of  His  ultimate  victory,  one  in  the 
common  love  for  His  Person,  prompting  activities 
of  love  to  mankind  for  His  Name's  sake,  which 
activities,  unceasing  from  the  beginning,  would  at 
any  moment,  and  above  all  now,  fall  with  a  crash 
to  the  ground  could  it  be  believed  that  Christ  had 
not  risen;  such  a  fact,  such  a  Church,  continuous 
through  all  after  time  in  motive  and  in  act,  is  a 
clearer  and  a  nearer  light  than  even  the  written 
Gospels.  No  criticism,  higher  or  textual,  can  im- 
peach its  existence  or  its  meaning.  Through  the 
ocean  of  human  story  it  flows  on,  like  the  Gulf 
Stream  through  the  Atlantic;  the  waters  seem  the 
same,  but  the  current  has  a  power  and  an  aim  which 
are  distinct  and  all  its  own.  After  every  deduction  for 
human  frailties,  the  Church  is,  as  is  the  mighty  river 
^  Post-Communion  Prayer  (Prayer  Book). 


POWER  47 


in  the  sea,  in  the  world,  not  of  the  world;  possessing- 
its  own  purpose,  its  own  motive,  its  own  life;  sus- 
tained evermore  by  the  mysterious  source  from 
whence  it  is  drawn  —  "the  working  of  God's  mighty 
power,  which  He  wrought  in  Christ,  when  He  raised 
Him  from  the  dead."^ 

But  conviction  inspired  by  this  twofold  considera- 
tion by  no  means  dismisses  lightly,  or  as  merely 
cumulative,  the  detailed  accounts  given  in  the 
Gospels.  These  derive  greater  consequence,  as 
historical  evidence,  from  considerations  too  often 
neglected;  a  neglect  the  more  singular  because 
these  considerations  gain  manifold  from  the  modern 
critical  attitude  towards  the  New  Testament  writ- 
ings. It  is  claimed  that  these  writings  are  to  be 
subjected  to  the  same  tests  and  sifted  with  the  same 
thoroughness  as  any  other  documents,  the  posses- 
sion of  which  we  confessedly  owe  to  human  instru- 
mentality. The  candid  Christian  cannot  but  admit 
instantly  the  correctness  of  this  claim  on  the  part 
of  the  earnest  inquirer.  Not  until  doubt  has  ended 
in  acceptance,  in  the  confession  that  Jesus  Christ 
is  the  Son  of  God,  do  these  writings  acquire  to  the 
man  that  further  force  which  contemporaries  recog- 
nized in  the  Master.  He  spoke  as  one  having  au- 
thority;^ as  one  whose  "I"  dominated  hesitation, 
refuted  doubt,  and  compelled  allegiance.^  In  due 
measure  the  like  quality  passes  into  the  recorded 
words  of  those  whom  He  "sent,  as  the  Father  sent 

^  Ephesians,  i,  19,  20.  ^  St.  Matthew,  vii,  28,  29. 

3  Ibid.,  V,  21,  22,  27,  28,  31,  32,  ZZ*  34,  38,  39>  43>  44-  St.  John, 
vii,  46. 


48  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Me."  ^  They  also  have  authority,  they  command,  — 
after  acceptance  of  the  Resurrection,  but  not  before. 
But  this  reasonable  and  admitted  claim  to  criti- 
cize carries  with  it  consequences  not  sufficiently 
heeded.  Were  the  very  words  of  the  documents 
dictated  immediately  by  an  infallible  witness,  to 
whom  the  human  writer  served  only  the  purpose 
of  a  pen,  we  should  expect  and  must  find  a  record 
corresponding  to  the  qualities  of  the  presumed 
Author;  absolute  coherence,  entire  freedom  from 
error  and  contradiction.  The  Master  told  the  dis- 
ciples that  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  testified 
of  Him,  and  reproached  them  with  the  dullness 
that  failed  to  discern  that  witness,  ^  which  they 
and  we  now  can  see  after  that  He  has  opened  our 
eyes.  The  New  Testament  evidently  likewise  so 
testifies  of  Him;  on  its  very  face  it  bears  that  reason 
for  its  composition,  and  it  bears  no  other.  But  the 
writers  once  and  again  themselves  admit,  though 
incidentally  and  without  parade  of  fact,  that  they 
have  followed  customary  human  methods  in  the 
collection  of  data,  or  in  the  expression  of  opinion; 
in  short,  that  they  are  open  to  criticism.  Under 
these  circumstances,  imperfect  and  apparently  con- 
flicting statements,  such  as  are  found  in  the  narratives 
of  the  Resurrection,  are  not  indeed  better  for  such 
imperfection,  but  they  are  consistent  with,  and  bear 
the  stamp  of,  all  human  experience  of  honest  evi- 
dence, let  the  thing  witnessed  to  be  what  it  may. 

^  St.  John,  xvii,  i8;    xx,  21-23.     St.  Matthew,  xxviii,  19,  20. 
Acts,  ix,  15,  16.     Galatians,  i,  11-17;  ii,  i,  2,  6-9. 

^  St.  Luke,  xxiv,  25-27,  44-48.     St.  John,  v,  39,  46,  47. 


POWER  49 


Hence,  the  Inference  is  fair  that  the  evidence  has 
not  been  tampered  with,  but  given  to  the  best  of 
the  writer's  abihty.  It  has  not  been  made  to  undergo 
the  digestive  process  called  harmonizing,  —  a  process 
perfectly  correct  and  admirable,  provided  it  does 
not  deal  in  suppression  or  perversion  of  inconvenient 
fact  or  statement.  But  while  the  witnesses  thus 
collated  vary  among  themselves  in  details,  which 
may  not  always  be  capable  of  easy  reconcilement 
with  one  another,  they  agree  upon  the  central  fact 
that  the  Lord  had  risen  again  and  was  seen  by  His 
disciples.  Within  this  category  of  proof,  though  ex- 
ternal to  the  four  Gospels,  and  therefore  an  addi- 
tional corroboration,  should  here  be  mentioned 
St.  PauFs  summary  of  the  eye-witness  yet  available 
when  he  wrote:  "He  was  seen  of  Peter;  then  of 
the  Twelve;  after  that  He  was  seen  of  above  five 
hundred  brethren  at  once,  of  whom  the  greater  part 
remain  unto  this  present;  afterwards  He  was  seen 
of  James;  then  of  all  the  Apostles.  Last  of  all  He 
was  seen  of  me  also."  ^ 

One  hesitates  here  to  pass  over,  undeveloped,  the 
chain  of  assurance  reported  in  the  speeches  of  St. 
Peter  and  St.  Paul  in  the  Book  of  the  Acts ;  ^  still 
more  the  continually  recurrent  evidence  throughout 
the  epistles  of  St.  Paul  that  the  truth  of  the  Resur- 
rection underlay  all  his  thought  and  all  his  teaching; 
that  his  whole  career  of  self-sacrifice  rested  on  that 
one  certainty.  The  conversion  of  St.  Paul,  having 
in  view  the  character  and  antecedents  of  the  man, 
—  his   heredity   and   environment,  —  is   the  nearest 

^  I  Corinthians,  xv,  5-8.         ^  Ante,  p.  34;  foot-note. 
4 


50  THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

approach  that  Western  civihzation  presents  to  the 
conversion  of  a  high-caste  Brahman  of  mature  years; 
an  absolute  surrender  of  the  most  cherished  traditions, 
of  the  most  intensely  prized  class  distinction  and 
privilege,  of  social  and  religious  sympathies.  It 
rested  on  the  certainty  that  he  had  himself  seen  the 
risen  Christ;  a  certainty  confirmed  to  him  by  the 
testimony,  just  cited,  of  numerous  others  v^ho  also 
had  so  seen  Him  on  other  occasions. 

A  developed  treatise  on  Christian  evidence  is  not 
my  theme;  nor  am  I  fitted  for  it  by  scope  of  knov^- 
ledge,  or  by  antecedents.  What  I  seek  is  to  establish, 
by  suggestion,  a  reasonable  assurance  for  a  practical 
step,  for  men  such  as  I  myself  am.  The  great  mass 
of  men  must,  hke  myself,  confess  that  for  one  reason 
or  another,  training  or  occupation,  v^e  are  not  fitted 
here  to  sit  in  the  seat  of  the  teacher.  But  all,  again 
like  myself,  must  determine  v^hether  they  v^ill  accept 
or  reject  Christ. 

I  have  a  life  with  Christ  to  live ; 

But,  ere  I  live  it,  must  I  wait 
Till  learning  can  clear  answer  give 

Of  this  or  that  book's  date? 

I  have  a  life  In  Christ  to  live ; 

I  have  a  death  in  Christ  to  die ; 
And  must  I  wait  till  science  give 

All  doubts  a  full  reply  ?  ^ 

There  is  no  middle  path.  Non-acceptance  is  rejec- 
tion.    He    that    is    not    with    Me    is   against   Me.^ 

*  John  Campbell   Shairp.     One  could   wish  that  the   author, 
instead  of  "must  I  wait,"  had  written  "dare  I  wait." 
^  St.  Matthew,  xii,  30.     St.  Luke,  xi,  23. 


POWER  51 


True,  He  said  also,  He  that  is  not  against  Me  is  with 
Me;  ^  but  this  "not  against"  was  not  a  neutral  but  a 
positive  attitude,  that  the  man  will  not  withstand 
Christ;  and  the  man  who  will  not  resist  will  by 
Christ  be  taken  into  possession.  The  Christian 
scheme  provides  no  place  for  neutrals,  for  them  who 
are  neither  hot  nor  cold.^ 

The  attempt  here  has  been  to  bring  the  decision 
concerning  accepting  Christ  as  Master  and  Lord, 
with  all  the  change  of  heart,  life,  and  conduct  therein 
implied,  —  upon  which  acceptance  depends  the  Life 
of  the  Christian,  —  into  line  with  the  decisions  we 
all  continually  have  to  make  in  life;  decisions  based 
upon  knowledge  which  falls  short  of  demonstration, 
upon  a  weighing  of  conditions,  some  of  which  are 
known,  while  others  can  only  be  estimated,  perhaps 
even  only  surmised.  That  all  men  repeatedly  so  act, 
and  are  compelled  so  to  act,  in  the  management  of 
temporal  affairs,  is  a  fact  of  experience  too  common 
for  insistence.  A  sufficient  reason  for  leaving  some 
of  the  elements  of  the  Christian  decision  so  far  in 
doubt  is  to  be  found  in  the  necessity  of  leaving  man's 
will  substantially  free  to  make  or  to  refuse  the  moral 
choice.  Much  is  assured.  The  loftiness  of  the  Chris- 
tian standard,  exemplified  in  Christ,  and  that  He 
promises  attainment  to  His  followers,  is  admitted. 
The  main  incidents  of  His  life,  teaching,  and  death 
are  as  certain  as  any  other  historic  facts.  The  general 
record  of  the  teaching  of  the  Apostles,  that  they  pro- 
claimed that  Christ  is  the  Son  of  God,  with  Power, 
witnessed   by  the   Resurrection   from   the   dead,   of 

^  St.  Mark,  ix,  38-41.  ^  Revelation,  iii,  15,  16. 


52  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

which  resurrection  they  were  eye-witnesses,  is  equally 
certain.  That  the  letters  of  St.  Paul  breathe  the 
Resurrection  throughout,  as  a  fact  demonstrated  to 
him  by  ocular  evidence  and  confirmed  to  him  by  the 
testimony  of  others;  that  upon  it  he,  a  contemporary, 
threw  to  the  winds  a  cherished  past,  and  counted  all 
of  it,  and  all  other  things  present  and  to  come,  "  as 
dung  if  he  might  but  win  Christ,"  is  manifest.  It  is 
likewise  evident  that,  in  each  of  the  eighteen  centuries 
that  have  elapsed  since  Christ's  death,  thousands  of 
men  and  women  —  "a  great  multitude  which  no 
man  can  number,  of  all  peoples,  kindreds,  nations, 
and  tongues,"  have  done  the  same  for  His  Name, 
in  the  faith  of  His  Resurrection,  and  are  so  doing  at 
this  day.  This  also  is  matter  of  history  to  any  who 
will  inquire.  That  no  other  explanation  worthy  of 
the  name  historical  exists  to  account  for  the  change 
which  passed  over  the  Apostles  from  Friday  to  Sun- 
day —  a  change  only  less  extraordinary  than  the 
Resurrection  itself — this  too  is  sure.  The  Resur- 
rection alone  is  only  so  far  certain  as  this  cumulative 
historical  testimony  may  make  it  to  those  who  cannot 
be  eye-witnesses.  Having  in  view  the  promise,  of  a 
perfect  spiritual  nature  to  be  wrought  in  man,  — 
nay,  also,  of  the  redemption  of  the  body  from  the 
bondage  of  corruption,^  —  with  the  peace  and  joy 
naturally  ensuant  upon  such  a  new  nature,  the 
matter  for  decision  is  whether  the  evidence  is  suffi- 
cient to  justify  the  attempt. 

This  on  the  side  of  Self;   and  the  Gospel  of  Jesus 

Christ,  in  its  simple  and  unaffected  recognition  of 

*  Romans,  viii,  18-25;  vii,  24,  25.     i  Corinthians,  xv,  42,  43. 


POWER  53 


man's  nature  as  God  has  constituted  it,  makes  no 
pretentious  claim  to  an  altruism  which  places  Self 
wholly  out  of  court.  The  Lord  Jesus,  intending  the 
most  sublime  self-sacrifice  that  heroic  love  has  ever 
made,  did  not  disdain  the  appeal  to  His  hearers : 
What  shall  it  profit  a  man  ?  ^  Jesus  Christ  Himself 
"for  the  joy  that  was  set  before  Him  endured  the 
Cross,  despising  the  shame."  ^  But  what  was  the 
joy  set  before  Him.?  What  "the  joy  of  his  Lord" 
into  which  also  shall  enter  "the  good  and  faithful 
servants".?^  To  accomplish  the  Father's  will;  to 
redeem  His  brethren,  mankind.  "My  meat  is  to  do 
the  will  of  Him  that  sent  Me,  and  to  finish  His  work."* 
"And  this  is  the  will  of  Him  Who  sent  Me,  that 
every  one  that  beholdeth  the  Son  and  believeth  on 
Him  should  have  eternal  life;  that  of  all  which  He 
hath  given  Me  I  should  lose  nothing."  ^  "He  shall 
see  of  the  travail  of  His  soul  and  shall  be  satisfied. 
By  knowledge  of  Himself  shall  my  righteous  Servant 
make  many  righteous;  for  He  shall  bear  their  iniqui- 
ties." ^  But  all  the  same,  the  Gospel  does  point  Self 
ever  to  that  its  noblest  fulfilment,  nay,  its  sole  ful- 
filment —  in  Another.  The  exquisite  attraction  of 
the  Message  is  that  it  holds  up  before  us  such  a  Per- 
son as  Jesus  Christ  to  love,  fulfiUing  thereby  the  final 
demand  of  pure  human  nature  to  find  its  only  pos- 
sible satisfaction  in  loving  One  worthy ;  thus  meeting 

^  St.  Matthew,  xvi,  24-27.  St.  Mark,  viii,  34-38.  St.  Luke,  ix, 
21-26. 

2  Hebrews,  xii,  i,  2.         ^  St.  Matthew,  xxv,  21-23. 

*  St.  John,  iv,  32-34;  V,  30;  vi,  38.  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  39, 
42;   xi,  25-27.     St.  Luke,  x,  21. 

^  St.  John,  vi,  39,  40.       ^  Isaiah,  liii,  10-12  (Revised  V.). 


54  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

the  passion  to  adore,  the  loftiest  and  mightiest  affec- 
tion latent  in  humanity. 

"I,  if  I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth,  will  draw  all 
men  unto  Me."  ^  And  so  Christ  Crucified,  lifted  up 
upon  the  Cross,  is  the  Christ  perfected  for  the  wor- 
ship of  man.  The  human  death  of  Christ  excludes 
—  not  from  memory,  veneration,  or  imitation,  but  — 
from  rivalry,  even  His  human  life,  which  it  com- 
pletes, fulfils,  crowns.  It  is  the  ultimate  expression 
of  a  love  which  commands  allegiance  and  enables 
return.  I  determined  to  know  nothing  among  you, 
says  St.  Paul,  save  Jesus  Christ,  and  Him  cruci- 
fied,^ As  the  life  of  obedience,  begun,  perhaps,  in 
anxiety  about  self — What  shall  it  profit  .f*  —  pro- 
ceeds in  communion  by  the  appointed  means,  gradu- 
ally, step  by  step,  unperceived  as  is  many  a  radical 
change  while  in  progress,  the  lawful  appeal  to  self- 
interest  fades  away  like  a  night  vision.  The  lower 
motives  of  this  temporal  life,  or  of  heaven,  or  of  hell, 
drop  out  of  sight.  Little  by  little  the  Cross  rises  from 
the  earth,  and  the  Person  of  the  Crucified,  lifted  up 
to  the  eyes  of  the  believer  above  contact  with  that 
which  stands  for  this  present  world,  concentrates 
devotion  upon  Himself.  That  we  may  in  time  render 
to  Him,  in  utmost  measure,  that  which  He  has  given 
for  us,  our  all  in  return  for  His  all,  becomes  the  hope 
for  which  we  can  wait  in  patience,  however  arduous 
and  gradual  the  fulfilment.^  To  please  Him,  to  be 
found  in  Him,  having  the  righteousness  which  is  not 
our  own  ^  but  His,  abiding  within  us  and  upon  us, 

^  St.  John,  xii,  24-26,  32,  33.         ^  i  Corinthians,  ii,  1-6. 
^  Romans,  viii,  24,  25.  *  Philippians,  iii,  9. 


POWER  55 


even  as  the  Life  of  the  Christian  is  not  his  own,  but 
the  Life  of  Jesus  Christ  abiding  in  Him,  character 
transformed  ^  by  the  power  of  His  Life  and  Resur- 
rection, —  to  attain  all  this  becomes  the  motive  of  the 
Christian's  life.  We  have  known  Christ  after  the 
flesh;  we  shall  know  Him  so  no  more.  Old  things 
have  passed  away;   all  things  are  become  new.^ 

In  these  words  of  St.  Paul  ring  out  again  his 
triumphant  cry  concerning  the  resurrection  of  man : 
Sown  in  weakness,  raised  in  power.  The  early  stir- 
rings of  self-interest,  the  hesitating  choice,  the  dim 
starlight  of  faith,  feeble  in  themselves,  yet  bear 
within  them  the  immortal  quality  of  the  Life  from 
which  they  spring.  In  virtue  of  that  Life  they  work 
upward,  as  does  a  sown  seed,  until  they  issue  in  the 
fullness  of  the  harvest.  The  faint  streaks  of  dawn 
lead  on  to  the  rising  of  the  Sun  of  Righteousness,^  to 
the  love  for  the  Christ,  to  the  assurance  of  the  Spirit.* 
Thus  is  verified  afresh  the  Master's  saying,  "Except 
a  grain  of  wheat  fall  into  the  earth,  and  die,  it 
abideth  by  itself  alone;  but  if  it  die  it  bringeth  forth 
much  fruit."  ^  The  fact  of  His  Resurrection,  realized 
once  for  all  in  history,  is  realized  again  in  the  spiritual 
life  of  the  Christian,  as  it  already  has  been  by  his 
faith;  and  as  it  shall  be  hereafter  in  his  mortal  body, 
which  shall  rise  again  ^  as  did  that  of  Christ. 

^  Romans,  xii,  2.  ^2  Corinthians,  v,  16,  17. 

^  Malachi,  iv,  2.  St.  Luke,  i,  78.  Ephesians,  v,  14.  2  St.  Peter, 
i,  19. 

*  Romans,  viii,  14-17.     Galatians,  iv,  6.     i  St.  John,  v,  10. 

^  St.  John,  xii,  24. 

^  I  Corinthians,  xv,  12-19.     i  Thessalonians,  iv,  13-17. 


CHAPTER  II 
LIKENESS 

THE  Resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  is  chief 
among  the  evidence  for  His  claims  upon  us, 
upon  our  acceptance  of  His  Mission;  for 
thereby  He  is  declared  to  be  the  Son  of  God  with 
Power. ^  But  this  function  of  evidence  is  not  the  only, 
nor  the  principal,  relation  of  His  Resurrection  to  the 
Life  of  the  Christian.  The  first  necessary  thing  in 
drawing  near  to  God  is  to  beheve;  and  evidence 
therefore  is  first  in  order,  but  not  consequently  first 
in  importance.  Love  is  greater  than  Faith ;  ^  and 
as  the  Life  of  God  is  love,  so  the  derived  life  of  the 
Christian  is  also  love. 

The  Power  that  worketh  in  us  to  this  end,  of  love^ 
perfected,  is  the  self-same  Power  which  raised  up 
Christ  from  the  dead.  Thus  St.  Paul  writes  to  his 
converts :  I  pray  unceasingly  for  you,  that  God  may 
give  you  a  spirit  of  wisdom  and  revelation  in  Him; 
that  ye  may  know  what  is  the  hope  of  His  calling, 
and  what  the  greatness  of  His  Power  towards  us  who 
believe,  according  to  the  working  of  that  mighty 
Power  which  He  wrought  in  Christ,  when  He  raised 
Him  from  the  dead,  .  .  .  and  put  all  things  in  sub- 
jection  under  His   feet.^    And   again.  That  I  may 

*  Romans,  i,  4.     Acts,  xiii,  32,  33;  xvii,  31;  xxvi,  23. 
^  I  Corinthians,  xiii,  13.  ^  Ephesians,  i,  16-20. 

56 


LIKENESS  57 


know  Him  and  the  Power  of  His  Resurrection.^ 
To  us,  therefore,  the  Power  which  raised  Christ  from 
the  dead  is  the  same  that  will  work  in  us,  if  we  will, 
and  will  put  all  things  under  our  feet,  by  conforming 
our  characters  to  that  of  Him,  "Whom  to  serve  is  to 
reign."  ^    Likeness  to  Him  is  the  promise  to  us.^ 

Conformity  is  the  reflection  of  love.  We  all,  says 
St.  Paul,  with  unveiled  face  beholding  as  in  a  mirror 
the  glory  of  the  Lord,  are  transformed  into  the  same 
image.^  That  ye  be  likeminded,  of  the  same  mind,^ 
is  his  frequent  exhortation  to  his  converts ;  for  such 
a  state  is  the  expression  of  a  common  love  for  the 
one  Master.  Thus,  also,  in  each  successive  act  of 
the  Creation,^  it  is  said  that  God  pronounced  it 
"good,"  —  that  is,  conformed  to  the  Will  of  the 
Creator;  while  of  the  crowning  of  the  creative 
work,  it  is  afHrmed  that  God  created  man  in  His 
own  image.''     He  thus  expressed  His  love  to   man 

^  Philippians,  iii,  lo. 

^  Collect  for  Peace,  Morning  Prayer :  *' Whose  service  is  per- 
fect freedom"  is  a  paraphrase  of  the  Latin  original,  "Whom  to 
serve  is  to  reign." 

^  St.  Matthew,  x,  25.  St.  Luke,  vi,  40.  Ephesians,  iv,  13-16. 
I  St.  John,  iii,  i,  2. 

*  2  Corinthians,  iii,  18.     Compare  Romans,  xii,  2. 

^  Romans,  xii,  16;  xv,  5.  i  Corinthians,  i,  10.  2  Corinthians, 
xiii,  II.  Ephesians,  iv,  1-3.  PhiHppians,  i,  27;  ii,  2;  iii,  15-17; 
iv,  2.     I  St.  Peter,  iii,  8. 

®  Genesis,  i.  It  may  conduce  to  clear  thinking  to  recall  that 
Creation,  the  bringing  the  Universe  into  being,  from  nothing, 
differs  in  idea  as  in  reality  from  the  successive  modifications  of 
matter,  also  loosely  styled  creation,  through  which,  by  whatever 
name  described,  that  which  was  without  form,  and  void,  has  pro- 
gressed or  evolved  to  present  conditions. 

^  Genesis,  i,  26,  27. 


58  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

by  the  highest  gift  that  a  creature  can  receive.  As 
man  in  turn  learns  truly  to  love  God,  he  neces- 
sarily seeks  to  be  conformed  to  God,  by  following 
the  example  and  teaching  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  one 
perfect  Man,  Who  is  to  us  the  revelation  of  God's 
character,  and  of  what  He  wills  us  to  be.  God  has 
predestined  us,  who  so  desire,  to  be  conformed  to 
the  image  of  His  Son,  that  He  might  be  the  first-born 
among  many  brethren.^  Everyone  that  is  perfect 
shall  be  as  his  Master.^  In  the  creature,  the  char- 
acteristic which  works  towards  such  conformity  is 
Obedience.  '*  If  a  man  love  Me,  he  will  keep  my 
words."  ^  As  creation  was  the  expression  of  God's 
life  and  love,  so  obedience  in  outward  act  is  the 
expression  of  the  hidden  Life  of  the  Christian,  and 
of  the  love  to  the  Creator,  and  to^His  creation,  in 
which  that  Hfe  manifests  itself.  The  essence  of 
obedience  being  in  the  will,  it  is  less  an  outward  act 
than  a  living  principle. 

Hence,  consideration  of  the  Life  of  the  Christian 
may  not  be  limited  merely  to  its  source,  and  its 
abiding  dependence,  which  were  the  leading  theme 
of  the  preceding  chapter.  It  is  necessary  also  to 
dwell  upon  its  characteristics;  upon  the  powers, 
faculties,  qualities,  which  are  the  attributes  of  the 
inward  Life  itself,  and  in  which  likeness  to  its  Ori- 
ginal will  be  traced.  We  must  consider  likewise 
the  outward  manifestations  of  these  in  conduct,  and 
in  observance  of  the  ordinances  commanded  by 
God;    of  the  sacraments,  prayer,  communion  with 

*  Romans,  viii,  29.  ^  St.  Luke,  vi,  40. 

^  St.  John,  xiv,  15,  23,  24. 


LIKENESS  59 

God  in  His  Word,  the  assembling  ourselves  together 
for  the  united  worship  upon  which  our  Lord  has 
pronounced  the  peculiar  blessing  of  His  Own  im- 
mediate presence.^  These  are  acts  of  obedience, 
the  word  which  in  itself  sums  up  the  spiritual  pur- 
pose by  which  man  draws  near  to  God,  in  the  truest 
sense  of  increasing  conformity  to  His  Being  and  His 
Will. 

The  wilful  absence  of  any  of  these  outward  marks 
of  spiritual  character  is  symptomatic  of  an  imper- 
fect obedience,  of  an  inward  disease,  perverting 
the  will.  This  it  is  which  is  so  ominous  in  the  dis- 
position of  many  in  our  day  to  forsake  "the  assem- 
bling of  ourselves  together"  ^  in  the  houses  of  God; 
a  disposition  which  carries  with  it  the  neglect  of 
the  sacraments  of  life.  Not  merely  does  this  ignore 
a  commonplace  of  human  experience,  that  all  good 
purposes  and  works  are  forwarded  by  meeting 
together  for  a  common  object,  inciting  and  confirm- 
ing one  another;  but  in  its  neglect  of  Christ's  teach- 
ing and  example,  and  of  all  Christian  tradition,  it 
is  a  symptom  of  obedience  sapped  by  self-pleasing, 
of  wilful  nonconformity  to  the  likeness  of  Christ, 
Who  frequented  habitually  both  temple  and  syna- 
gogue.^    How  thus  shall  we  draw  nigh  to  God  .? 

^  St.  Matthew,  xviii,  19,  20. 

^  Hebrews,  x,  25.  The  whole  passage  is  worth  quoting,  because 
it  embraces  the  rationale  of  all  public  assemblies :  Let  us  hold  fast 
the  confession  of  our  hope,  that  it  waver  not;  and  let  us  consider 
one  another,  to  provoke  unto  love  and  good  works.  Not  forsaking 
our  own  assembling  together,  as  the  custom  of  some  is,  but 
exhorting  one  another,  and  so  much  the  more,  as  ye  see  the  day 
drawing  nigh.  ^  St.  Luke,  iv,  16. 


6o  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Indeed,  in  these  outward  observances  Is  found 
the  first  and  the  easiest  exercise  of  obedience;  and, 
because  easiest,  therefore  that  which  it  is  most 
culpable  to  withhold.  The  perfect  conformity  of 
the  spirit  which  brings  every  thought  into  captivity 
to  Christ  ^  is  the  result  only  of  a  long  discipline. 
Even  of  the  Christ  Himself,  Who  was  without  sin, 
it  is  written  that,  though  a  Son,  He  learned  obedience 
by  the  things  which  He  suffered;  and,  though 
already  spotless  in  His  human  nature,  was  thus 
made  perfect.^  So  we  find  in  the  Gospel  accounts 
of  the  supreme  test  of  obedience,  obedient  unto 
death,^  in  the  closing  days  of  His  humiliation,  the 
distinct  marks  of  progress,  from  perfection  to  per- 
fection, as  star  differs  from  star  in  glory. 

For,  in  the  effort  to  conform  the  will  of  man  to  the 
purpose  of  God,  those  who  have  had  to  undergo 
great  trial,  or  have  reflected  upon  the  question  of 
temptation,  or  trial,  in  general,  will  have  no  diffi- 
culty in  recognizing  three  stages.  There  is,  first, 
submission,  in  which  the  will  gets  no  further  than 
" putting  itself  under"  the  Will  of  God ;  willing,  yes ; 
but  feeling,  though  repressing,  the  contrary  human 
impulse,  the  shrinking  from  suffering  which  is  in- 
separable from  human  nature.  This  finds  expression 
in  the  first  entreaty  of  Jesus  Christ  in  Gethsemane : 

^  2  Corinthians,  x,  5. 

^  Hebrews,  v,  7-9.  Dean  Goulburn,  in  his  "  Thoughts  on  Per- 
sonal Rehgion,"  uses  here  an  apt  simile.  A  flawless  block  of  marble 
is  perfect  in  the  sense  of  being  without  defect;  but  it  becomes  per- 
fect in  quite  another  sense  when,  under  the  discipline  of  the  chisel, 
it  realizes  the  thought  of  the  sculptor. 

^  Philippians,  ii,  8. 


LIKENESS  6 1 


"  My  Father,  if  it  be  possible,  let  this  cup  pass  away 
from  Me:  nevertheless,  not  as  I  will,  but  as  Thou 
wilt."  ^  Then  the  will,  if  it  remain  constant,  advances 
inevitably  to  acquiescence.  The  contrary  impulse, 
to  recoil,  disappears ;  the  spirit  lies  quiet  —  the  root 
idea  of  acquiescence  —  under  God's  dealing  with 
it.  So  the  humanity  of  our  Lord  in  its  faithful 
struggle  advances  in  perfect  conformity.  In  the 
interval  between  His  first  and  second  petitions  the 
"let  this  cup  pass  from  Me"  drops  away.  "My 
Father,  if  this  cannot  pass  away  from  Me,  except 
I  drink  it.  Thy  Will  be  done."  ^ 

«  O  Lord,  my  God,  do  Thou  Thy  Holy  Will ! 
I  will  lie  still. 
I  will  not  stir,  lest  I  forsake  Thine  arm, 

And  break  the  charm 
Which  lulls  me,  clinging  to  my  Father's  breast, 
In  perfect  rest.  *' 

The  highest  perfection  this,  I  have  somewhere  read, 
to  which  the  human  spirit  can  attain.  Yet,  having 
before  us  our  Lord's  experience,  there  is  clearly  a 
further  reach,  which  has  been  reahzed  not  by  Him 
only,  though  by  Him  supremely,  but  by  many  of 
His  followers ;  ^  in  their  measure  thus  made  like 
unto  Him.  Later,  in  that  night  of  spiritual  struggle 
and  spiritual  victory,  we  read,  "Jesus,  knowing  all 
things  that  were  coming  upon  Him,  went  forth."  * 
"Arise,  let  us  be  going;  he  that  betrayeth  Me  is  at 
hand."  ^     For  what  purpose  ?     Himself  to  take,  by 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  37-39.         ^  Ihid.,  xxvi,  42. 
^  Hebrews,  ii,  10-13.  ^  St.  John,  xviii,  4. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  46. 


62  THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

His  own  free  act,  with  His  own  hand,  the  cup  offered 
to  Him.  This  is  acceptance,  the  active  exercise  of 
the  will,  transcending  the  passive.  By  His  own 
voluntary  act  He  "takes  to"  Himself — which  is 
what  acceptance  means  —  all  of  doing  and  of  suffer- 
ing which  "the  cup"  signified  to  Him.  What  that 
full  significance  was  we  do  not  know;  but,  whatever 
it  was,  we  do  see  that  the  embracing  it  was  no  longer 
the  Father's  will  only,  but  the  human  will  also  of 
the  Sufferer  Himself  No  more  is  it  simply  "Thou 
wilt";  it  has  become  "I  will."  The  human  will, 
which  throughout  temptation  has  suffered,  though 
without  flinching,  no  longer  submits  only,  no  longer 
lies  quiet  only,  but  rises  to  perfect  conformity,  to 
perfect  oneness,  with  the  Divine.  The  Lord  Jesus 
has  learned  spiritual  obedience  to  its  uttermost,  and 
so  is  made  perfect. 

It  is  expedient  to  note  that  this  perfect  spiritual 
obedience,  this  acceptance,  is  to  be  traced  at  earlier, 
but  less  urgent,  stages  of  our  Lord's  human  career; 
for  we  are  not  to  think  of  the  incidents  in  the  garden 
as  being,  in  this  respect,  more  than  the  full  develop- 
ment, under  extreme  trial,  of  that  which  existed  in 
Him  all  along.  Being  tried.  He  suffered ;  ^  and  in 
Gethsemane  suffered  supremely  because  of  the  near 
approach,  possibly  the  actual  beginning,  of  the  spir- 
itual agony  in  which  His  life  of  sorrows  culminated. 
But,  while  this  end  was  still  relatively  distant,  and 
He  in  comparative  safety,  we  read :  When  the  time 
came  that  He  should  be  received  up.  He  steadfastly 
set  His  face  to  go  to  Jerusalem.^  That  is,  of  His 
*  Hebrews,  ii,  17,  18;  iv,  14-16.  ^  St.  Luke,  ix,  51. 


LIKENESS  63 


own  will  and  act  He  accepted  the  doom  He  foresaw, 
and  went  forward  to  meet  it.^  A  similar  indication 
of  will  exerted  actively  is  found  in  His  power,  and 
refusal,  to  summon  angels  to  deliver  Him ;  ^  with 
which  collate  the  refusals  of  the  Temptation  in  the 
Wilderness.^ 

Nothing  is  ever  lost,  or,  can  be  lost,  really,  to  a  will 
that  thus  gives  itself  to  God.  The  material  loss,  — 
of  a  person  dear,  or  of  something  valued,  —  the  hard 
hit  to  the  affections  or  to  the  circumstances,  may  be 
beyond  the  man's  power  to  prevent;  but  in  the 
truest  and  highest  sense  of  possession,  in  ability  to 
surrender  to  God,  nothing  can  take  them  away. 
However  irretrievably  gone  materially,  the  will,  by 
loving  acceptance  of  the  fact,  retains  the  power  to 
lay  them  before  God's  throne,  freely  dedicated  to 
Him,  —  consecrated.  So  they  remain  the  man's 
in  the  truest  sense;  treasures  in  Heaven,  where 
neither  moth  nor  rust  doth  corrupt,  nor  death  be- 
reave, nor  thieves  break  through  nor  steal. ^  There 
he  shall  find  them. 

In  these  successive  stages  of  conformity,  it  is  not 
merely  fanciful  to  see,  in  a  figure,  the  Resurrection 
itself.  In  submission,  the  human  will  has  died  — 
unto  itself — like  the  grain  of  wheat  cast  into  the 
earth. ^  Like  the  sown  seed,  and  the  buried  body, 
it  lies  quietly,  in  the  intermediate  stage  of  seeming 
passivity,  and  in  acceptance  has  risen  again  to  the 

^  St.  Matthew,  xvi,  21.     St.  Mark,  x,  32-34. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  53,  54. 

^  Ihid.y  iv.     Also,  St.  John,  xii,  27,  28. 

*  St.  Matthew,  vi,  19-21.     Compare  Ibid.^  x,  39;  xvi,  25. 

^  St.  John,  xii,  24,  25. 


64  THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

glory  and  abundance  of  the  harvest,  to  the  posses- 
sion of  itself  in  that  fullness  of  power,  and  of  con- 
formity to  the  Will  of  the  Creator,  in  which  consists 
the  glorious  liberty  of  the  sons  of  God.^  Sown  in 
weakness,  raised  in  power.^ 

From  this  illustration  in  the  Life  of  the  Lord 
Himself,  that  which  in  any  case  would  be  ante- 
cedently probable  may  be  assumed  as  certain : 
that  the  obedience  of  the  Christian,  like  all  mani- 
festations of  created  life  known  to  us,  will  have  be- 
ginning, growth,  and  only  ultimate  fullness.  Nor 
is  it  uninstructive  to  remark  that  the  healthy  progress 
of  the  natural  man  depends  upon  the  practice  of 
obedience.  Obedience  in  the  child  is  the  first  stage 
in  wholesome  development;  and,  as  life  advances, 
obedience  to  the  laws  of  right  and  of  nature,  by 
which  the  man  is  surrounded,  is  the  unavoidable 
condition  for  reaching  the  utmost  of  accomplish- 
ment permitted  by  his  natural  faculties.  But  to 
do  this  happily,  as  well  as  successfully,  conformity 
must  be  that  of  the  accordant  will,  not  merely  of 
sullen  act. 

It  may  be  noted  also,  as  an  expression  of  the  mind 
of  Christ,  that  the  first  three  clauses  of  that  Prayer, 
which  by  preeminence  we  call  the  Lord's,  correspond 
to  these  successive  stages  in  His  progress  to  a  per- 
fected obedience. 

I.    Hallowed  be  Thy  Name.     God's  Name  is  the 

expression  of  His  Being  and  of  His  Will.     In  the 

Lord's    Prayer    the    particular    expression    of   that 

Being  and  that  Will  is  in  the  address,  "Our  Father." 

*  Romans,  viii,  21.  ^  i  Corinthians,  xv,  43. 


LIKENESS  65 

So  the  Son,  by  His  first  petition  in  Gethsemane, 
"O  my  Father,"  etc.,  expresses  fihal  submission  to 
the  Will  of  Him  Whom  He  has  named  Father. 
His  human  will  hallows  the  Name,  Father,  by  sub- 
mitting to  the  paternal  command  piously,^  and 
therefore  faultlessly;  but  it  is  still  reluctant  to  the 
suffering.  It  obeys,  not  yet  because  in  the  highest 
sense  accordant,  but  because  it  thus  hallows  the 
Name,  Father.^ 

2.  Thy  Kingdom  come.  The  Kingdom  of  God 
may  come  in  manifestation  outward  or  inward;  but 
it  is  fulfilled  only  when  God  is  completely  enthroned 
in  the  will  of  the  creature.  Such  complete  enthrone- 
ment implies  more  than  submission,  as  the  rule  over 
willing  subjects  is  mightier  than  that  over  those 
whose  wills  are  coerced,  even  though  it  be  by  them- 
selves. Hence  the  Kingdom  of  the  Father  comes  in 
fullness  only  when  the  human  will  has  progressed 
from  submission  to  accord.  It  is  no  longer  reluctant. 
This,  as  has  been  seen,  is  the  case  in  the  second 
petition  of  Gethsemane,  in  which  the  instinct  of 
recoil  is  stilled,  and  God's  Kingdom  has  come  in 
power,  because  with  full  acquiescence. 

3.  Thy  Will  be  done  on  earth,  as  it  is  in  Heaven. 
It  seems  scarcely  necessary  to  insist  that  the  "doing" 
of  the  Father's  Will  means  something  more  than 

*  I  have  used  the  word  "pious"  in  its  strict,  but  almost  disused 
sense  of  reverence  and  affection  for  a  parent.  In  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews  (v,  7),  the  King  James  version  reads  (marginal)  that 
"He  was  heard  for  his  piety."  The  Revised  Version  reads  "for 
His  godly  fear."  The  two  are  equivalent,  provided,  in  the  second, 
due  emphasis  is  laid  on  "godly." 

^  Collate  with  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  38-42.      St.  John,  xii,  27,  28. 

5 


66  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

mere  acquiescence,  however  perfect.  "To  do"  is 
active.  But  should  any  doubt  remain,  in  that  the 
precise  v^ords  "Thy  Will  be  done"  v^ere  used  by 
our  Lord  in  the  garden  to  express,  first,  submission, 
and,  second,  acquiescence,  it  will  be  removed  by 
the  qualifying  clause,  "As  it  is  in  Heaven."  Whether 
this  be  understood  of  God  Himself,  or  of  the  holy 
angels,  or  of  both,  the  Will  is  "done"  by  action;  as 
when  our  Lord,  in  His  going  forth  to  meet  His 
enemies,  by  that  act  Himself  took  up  the  Cross,  and 
did  the  Will.  "My  Father  worketh  even  until  now, 
and  I  work;"  ^  while  for  the  angels,  "are  they  not 
all  ministering  spirits,  sent  forth  to  do  service  ?"  ^ 

For  many  centuries  these  three  petitions  of  Jesus 
Christ  have  gone  forth  from  the  public  worship  of 
the  Christian  Church,  and  from  Christian  believers 
in  the  privacy  of  their  closets,  and  how  small  at  first 
thoughts  seems  the  result!  "Where  is  the  promise 
of  His  coming  "  ^  in  the  hearts  and  wills  of  men  ? 
Where  is  the  conformity,  where  the  obedience  ? 
How  dim  the  likeness  to  the  Master,  even  in  the 
best !  The  inadequacy  of  the  apparent  reply  to  the 
volume  of  verbal  prayer  is  to  be  attributed  primarily 
to  the  feebleness,  the  unreality,  the  unexpectancy, 
of  those  who  have  used  it;  but  it  also  may  be  that 
our  unexpectancy,  or,  as  Jesus  Christ  would  call  it, 
"unbelief,"  has  not  been  on  the  lookout  to  note  the 
evidences    of  answer   where   they    are   to    be    seen. 

*  St.  John,  V,  17. 

^  Hebrews,  i,  14.    Those  famiHar  with  the  Bible  will  not  need 
references  for  the  many  active  missions  committed  to  the  angels. 
^  2  St.  Peter,  iii,  4. 


LIKENESS  67 

The  Name  of  God  has  been  hallowed,  is  now  hal- 
lowed, His  Kingdom  has  already  come,  in  large 
measure,  in  the  reverence  and  recognition  accorded 
to  Jesus  Christ,  Who  is  the  express  Image  of  the 
invisible  God.^ 

Answer  has  come,  in  unbeliever  as  well  as  in  be- 
liever. The  words  of  John  Stuart  Mill,  echoed 
by  many  a  heart,  "Nor,  even  now,  would  it  be  easy, 
even  for  an  unbeliever,  to  find  a  better  translation  of 
the  rule  of  virtue  from  the  abstract  to  the  concrete, 
than  to  endeavor  so  to  live  that  Christ  would  approve 
our  life,"  ^  may  fairly  be  considered  by  Christian 
faith  as  a  response  to  the  prayer,  "Hallowed  be  Thy 
Name."  For  a  name  surely  is  hallowed,  when  such 
veneration  to  Him  Who  bears  it  is  attributed  by 
one  who  is  at  once  an  unbeliever  in  His  Divine 
Nature,  and  yet  representative  of  the  lofty  ideals 
of  men  of  good  will.  The  words  quoted  are  the 
echo,  distant  and  faint  it  may  be,  the  reflection, 
real  though  dim,  of  His  own  phrases :  I  —  My  Per- 
son and  My  teaching  —  am  the  Way;  I  am  the 
Truth;  not,  unhappily,  of  that  further  word  of 
power  to  the  believer,  —  I  am  the  Life.^  To  the 
Christian  this  hallowing  of  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ 
is  the  fulfilment,  doubtless  unconscious,  of  the  full 
final  step  of  hallowing  the  Name,  the  Being,  of 
Him,  of  Whom  the  Lord  Jesus  is  the  brightness 
of  His  Glory,  the  express  Image  of  His  Person. 
"He  that  [thus]  hath  seen  Me,  hath  [in  like  manner] 

^  Hebrews,  i,  3.     St.  John,  xii,  45;  xiv,  7-1 1.    Colossians,  i,  15. 
^  Three  Essays  on  Rehgion.     New  York,  H.  Holt  and  Co., 
1878,  pp.  254-5.  ^  St.  John,  xiv,  6. 


68  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

seen  the  Father."  ^  "He  that  confesseth  the  Son 
hath  the  Father  also."  ^  We  may  hope  that  they 
who  so  hear  and  so  follow  are  of  "My  sheep."  ^ 

So  likewise  the  prayer,  "Thy  Kingdom  come," 
is  herein  fulfilled;  for  this  word  of  Mill's  expresses 
the  dominion,  the  kingship,  in  the  realm  of  morals, 
commonly  conceded  to  Jesus  Christ  by  men  of 
lofty  and  righteous  purpose.  His  authority  is 
recognized  freely,  not  only  over  men's  consciences, 
but  over  their  reason,  in  that  sphere  where  decision 
is  made  between  right  and  wrong.  His  reason  pene- 
trated to  the  roots  of  human  motive  and  conduct, 
and  thence  formulated  for  men  the  loftiest  standards, 
which  His  life  exemplified  and  imposed.  Thus  He 
entered  into  a  Kingdom  which  is  not  only  over  the 
heart  but  over  the  intellect.  The  order  of  the  peti- 
tions, and  of  the  answers  to  them,  is  logical.  I.  The 
hallowing  of  the  Name,  the  recognition  of  excellence. 
2.  The  coming  of  the  Kingdom,  the  recognition  of  au- 
thority. 3.  The  doing  of  the  Will,  —  not  yet  per- 
fected. The  blade,  the  ear,  then  the  full  corn  in 
the  ear;^  the  harvest  for  which  He  and  we  still 
wait. 

Another  well-known  name,  of  one  once  a  believer 
in  revelation,  but  who  has  since  lost  that  faith,  may 
be  cited  in  recognition  of  the  supreme  moral  ex- 
cellence and  intellectual  originahty  of  Jesus  Christ. 
It  is  not  too  much  to  claim  that  the  words  to  be 
quoted  both  hallow  the  Name  of  Jesus,  and  recognize 
in  Him  an  authority  at  once  boundless  and  endless. 

^  St.  John,  xiv,  7-9.  2  I  St.  John,  ii,  23. 

^  St.  John,  X,  2-16.  *  St.  Mark,  iv,  26-29. 


LIKENESS  69 

Goldwin  Smith  in  a  quite  recent  letter  ^  says  :  "  My 
present  conception  of  the  historical  relation  of  Chris- 
tianity and  its  Founder  to  humanity  and  human  prog- 
ress does  not  seem  to  me  to  be  so  different  from  what 
it  was  half  a  century  ago  as,  when  I  came  to  compare 
the  two,  I  expected  to  find  it.  In  those  days  I  be- 
lieved in  revelation.  But  my  argument  [then]  was 
not  from  revelation,  but  from  ethics  and  history.  The 
undertaking  of  Christianity  [which  is  Christ]  to  con- 
vert mankind  to  a  fraternal  and  purely  beneficent 
type  of  character,  and  enfold  men  in  a  universal 
brotherhood,  baffled  and  perverted  although  the 
effort  has  been  in  various  ways,  appears  to  have  no 
parallel  in  ethical  history.  Nor  does  the  Christian 
character,  or  the  effort  to  create  it,  depart  with  behef 
in  dogma." 

This  last  sentence  affirms  the  still  existing  influence 
of  the  character  and  teaching  of  Jesus  Christ  over 
men  who  do  not  accept  His  Divine  Personahty.  The 
Christian  may  well  doubt  whether  such  influence 
would  continue,  merely  through  its  appeal  to  the 
moral  sense  and  to  the  intellect,  if  the  Faith,  on  which 
the  Master  laid  such  stress,  should  depart  wholly  from 
the  earth,  surrendering  thus  the  Power  from  above 
which  is  ministered  to  man  through  faith ;  whether, 
in  short,  the  vitality  of  the  Christian  Church,  as  the 
leaven  of  the  mass,^  may  not  be  essential  to  the  un- 
doubted influence  of  the  Christian  standard  upon 
men  of  good  will,  who  yet  do  not    believe.     None 

^  New  York  "  Sun,"  January  20,  1907,  **  New  Faith  linked 
with  the  Old." 

^  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  ^^. 


70  THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

the  less,  the  admission  of  this  abiding  influence  is  a 
demonstration  that  the  Lord's  Prayer,  "  Hallowed 
be  Thy  Name,  Thy  Kingdom  come,  Thy  Will  be 
done,"  echoed  through  the  centuries  by  His  follow- 
ers, has  not  fallen  wholly  to  the  ground,  even  among 
those  alien  to  His  fold. 

The  words  already  quoted  related  to  their  writer's 
standpoint  of  to-day.  The  writing  of  a  half-century 
before,  which  he  alludes  to,  and  cites,  was  in  part  as 
follows:  "The  type  of  character  set  forth  in  the 
Gospel  history  is  an  absolute  embodiment  of  love, 
both  in  the  way  of  action  and  affection,  crowned  by 
the  highest  possible  exhibition  of  it  in  an  act  of  the 
most  transcendent  self-devotion  to  the  interest  of  the 
human  race.  This  being  the  case,  it  is  difficult  to  see 
how  the  Christian  type  of  character  can  ever  be  left 
behind  by  the  course  of  human  development,  lose 
the  allegiance  of  the  moral  world,  or  give  place  to  a 
newly  emerging  or  higher  type.  This  type,  it  would 
appear,  being  perfect,  will  be  final.  ...  In  a  moral 
point  of  view,  in  short,  the  world  may  abandon 
Christianity,  but  it  never  can  advance  beyond  it. 
This  conclusion  is  not  a  matter  of  authority,  or 
even  of  revelation.  If  it  is  true,  it  is  a  matter  of 
reason,  as  much  as  anything  in  the  world."  He  then 
"went  on  to  dwell  on  the  freedom  of  the  Christian 
type  of  character,  as  embodied  in  the  Founder  of 
Christianity,  from  peculiarities  of  nation,  race,  or 
sex,  which  might  have  derogated  from  its  perfection 
as  a  type  of  pure  humanity." 

From  the  standpoint  of  the  writer  of  these  words, 
there  is  conceded  to  Jesus  Christ  a  singular  original- 


LIKENESS  71 


ity  in  the  realms  both  of  morals  and  of  intellect.^  Of 
intellect,  in  that  He  conceived  and  taught  such  a 
standard  of  human  excellence;  of  morals,  in  that  He 
exempHfied  in  His  life  and  character,  even  to  the 
utmost  of  self-sacrifice,  the  ideal  v^hich  He  set  forth. 
This  teaching  and  this  example  were  reahzed  in  the 
midst  of  surroundings  so  far  unfavorable  as  in  no 
wise  to  account  for  them,  and  so  to  lessen  the  claim 
to  originality.  True,  as  He  himself  said,  "He  came 
to  fulfil  the  law  and  the  prophets"  ^  —  His  predeces- 
sors; but  the  fulfilment  appeared  to  the  immediate 
hearers  to  be  but  destruction  in  another  form.^  No 
deduction  therefore  need  be  made  from  His  suprem- 
acy as  original,  which  is  but  another  way  of  expressing 
His  dominion  over  character  and  thought;  His  ex- 
cellence and  His  authority. 

Moreover,  this  willing,  nay,  this  enthusiastic, 
eulogy  from  an  unbeliever  in  His  Power  and  Godhead 
attributes  to  this  dominion  of  Jesus  Christ  finality 
and  universality.  It  adopts,  though  in  other  words, 
the  profession  of  the  Nicene  Creed:  "Of  His  King- 
dom there  shall  be  no  end."  Man,  it  is  said,  may 
progress  indefinitely,  but  he  cannot  overpass  the 
example  and  the  teaching  which  are  the  standard  of 

^  After  writing  this,  and  when  verifying  the  quotation  already 
made  from  J.  S.  Mill,  I  came  across  the  following  words,  the  cor- 
roboration by  that  distinguished  thinker  of  the  statement  in  the  text. 
**  About  the  Hfe  and  sayings  of  Jesus  there  is  a  stamp  of  personal 
originality  combined  with  profundity  of  insight  which  .  .  .  must 
place  the  Prophet  of  Nazareth,  even  in  the  estimation  of  those  who 
have  no  beHef  in  his  inspiration,  in  the  very  first  rank  of  the  men 
of  subHme  genius  of  whom  our  species  can  boast." 

^  St.  Matthew,  v,  17-19. 

3  St.  John,  xi,  47-53.     Acts,  vi,  13-15. 


72  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Christ's  Kingdom  over  the  hearts  and  wills  of  men. 
"This  can  never  lose  the  allegiance  of  the  moral 
world."  So,  too,  for  universality,  all  mankind  are 
embraced  as  possible  subjects  of  the  kingdom; 
able,  if  they  will,  to  conform  themselves  to  the  stand- 
ard, to  be  like  Him.  The  words  quoted,  as  to  the 
freedom  of  Christ's  character  from  national  or  racial 
peculiarities,  gathering  every  type  within  its  scope, 
echo  the  prophecy  in  Daniel;  which,  whatever  its 
date,  was  surely  anterior  to  Christ.  "There  was 
given  Him  dominion,  and  glory,  and  a  kingdom,  that 
all  the  peoples,  nations,  and  languages  should  serve 
Him :  His  dominion  is  an  everlasting  dominion  which 
shall  not  pass  away,  and  His  kingdom  that  which 
shall  not  be  destroyed."  *  The  Christian  disciple 
in  a  later  age  adopts  these  words :  "Worthy  art  Thou, 
for  Thou  wast  slain,  and  didst  purchase  unto  God 
with  Thy  Blood,  .  .  .  men  of  every  tribe,  and  tongue, 
and  people,  and  nation,  and  madest  them  to  be  unto 
our  God  a  kingdom  and  priests."  ^  According  to 
the  flesh,  Jesus  Christ  was  a  Jew,  and  His  own  im- 
mediate mission  to  the  Jews  only;  ^  but  He  was  also 
such  that,  in  the  new  man,  which  He  revealed  by 
teaching  and  example,  even  in  Himself,  there  cannot 
be  Greek  and  Jew,  circumcision  and  uncircumcision, 
barbarian,  Scythian,  bondman,  freeman,  male  or 
female :  ^   but  Christ  is  all,  and  in  all.^ 

The    Name    is    surely    hallowed,    the     Kingdom 
surely  come,  when  even  they,  who  see  in  the  King 

*  Daniel,  vii,  13,  14.  ^  Revelation,  v,  9;  vii,  9. 
^  St.  Matthew,  XV,  24-26.     Romans,  xv,  8. 

*  Galatians,  iii,  28.  ^  Colossians,  iii,  11. 


LIKENESS  73 


only  a  man  like  themselves,  can  speak  as  we  have 
just  read.  But  the  children  of  the  Kingdom,  in  pro- 
fession at  least,  they  that  call  themselves  by  the  name 
of  Christ,  fail  to  appreciate  not  only  such  signs  of 
His  having  received  His  own  among  those  who  by 
choice  remain  without,  but  also  the  abundant  evi- 
dence in  the  Christian  ranks  of  the  many  lives,  the 
records  of  which,  in  likeness  to  His,  are  the  manifesta- 
tion that  the  Kingdom  is  come  indeed  in  power.  If 
Christian  citizenship  is  in  Heaven,^  where,  so  to  say, 
is  Christian  patriotism,  that  regard  is  paid  only  to 
the  ignoble  elements  of  our  own  lives  and  surround- 
ings, or  to  the  seeming  failures  of  to-day,  while  there 
is  neglect  to  note  with  exultation  the  great  names  and 
acts  which  illumine  the  past  and  the  present;  the 
history  of  the  heavenly  kingdom  set  up  on  earth  for 
the  saving  of  the  peoples  ? 

If  the  Epistles  of  St.  Paul  are  read  attentively,  or 
the  history  of  the  early  centuries  studied,  it  is  im- 
possible to  think  that  those  times  so  differed  from 
ours  that  the  Church  then  had  Httle  or  no  cause  to 
mourn  for  many  professed  believers  who  had  sinned 
and  not  repented.  Yet,  now  that  those  days  have 
passed  away,  the  glory  that  marked  them  is  clearly 
seen.  Doubtless,  it  is  well  that  each  generation,  for 
its  own  humbling,  keep  its  own  shortcomings  ever 
in  mind;  but  humility  is  one  thing,  dejection  another. 
The  honor  of  the  King  demands  the  continual  mem- 
ory of  the  manifestations  of  His  Power,  in  the  holy 
lives  and  mighty  deeds  which  have  hallowed  His 
Name,  shown  forth  His  Kingdom,  carried  out  His 
*  Philippians,  iii,  20. 


74  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Will.  What  earthly  state  drops  out  of  mind  its  great 
names  ?  Alfred  of  England,  St.  Louis  of  France,  our 
own  Washington  and  Lincoln,  are  but  the  most 
conspicuous  in  their  several  nations  of  the  many 
heroes,  to  recount  whom  "time  would  fail,"  as  said 
the  author  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  concerning 
the  champions  of  the  Faith  among  his  own  people;  ^ 
whom  the  Church  of  Christ  also  claims  as  of  His 
Kingdom  and  hers. 

It  was  the  very  evils  and  miseries  of  their  genera- 
tion that  brought  into  action  the  qualities  of  these 
men.  Did  they  find  in  their  times,  or  among  their 
own  countrymen,  that  general  following,  that  faith- 
ful support,  the  failure  to  obtain  which  is  freely 
cited  as  the  dishonor  of  the  Church  of  Christ  now .? 
Nay,  when  the  full  flower  and  perfect  example  of 
Christian  life  and  character  was  her6  on  earth,  did 
He  so  draw  in  His  train  the  "world"  of  His  day.? 
"The  Light  came  into  the  world,  and  men  loved  the 
darkness  rather  than  the  Light."  ^  "He  came  unto 
His  own,  and  His  own  received  Him  not."  ^  "How 
often  would  I  have  gathered  thy  children  together, 
and  ye  would  not ! "  * 

Again,  with  eye  ranging  down  the  future  centuries 
to  our  own,  the  tender  irony  of  Christ  searches  out 
one  of  the  cheap  delusions  of  to-day  as  to  the  winning 
of  mankind  to  Him :  "Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto  you. 
Ye  seek  Me,  not  because  ye  saw  signs,  but  because 
ye  ate  of  the  loaves,  and  were  filled.^^  ^  It  is  good  that 
men  be  filled,  and  healed;  Christ  filled  them  and 

*  Hebrews,  xi,  32.  ^  St.  John,  iii,  19.  ^  Ihid..  i,  li. 

*  St.  Matthew,  xxiii,  37.  ^  St.  John,  vi,  26,  27. 


LIKENESS  75 

healed  them.  These  are  marks  attending  His  com- 
ing/ whether  in  Person,  or  in  His  Church,  or  in 
individual  followers.  They  have  never  been  lacking, 
least  of  all  to-day.  To  take  only  one  portion  of  the 
Mission  Field,  the  Far  East,  Christian  Missions, 
other  than  Roman  Catholic,  maintain  in  China, 
Japan,  and  Korea  over  400  hospitals,  which  within 
the  year  have  ministered  to  over  a  million  sufferers. 
There  are  also  over  3,000  educational  establishments, 
with  near  90,000  under  tuition.^  This  is  not  matter 
for  boasting;  those  most  closely  interested  know  too 
well  how  reproachfully  short  this  provision  falls  of 
the  urgent  demand  upon  Christians  to  be  up  and 
doing  in  their  Lord's  Name.  Nevertheless,  in  origin 
and  practice  these  institutions  are  not  for  gain. 
They  are  the  act  of  Christian  benevolence,  chiefly 
foreign,  accessories  to  the  principal  motive  of  preach- 
ing Jesus  Christ  and  His  Kingdom;  imitating  herein 
the  example  of  Him  Who  "went  about  teaching 
in    the    synagogues,    preaching    the    Gospel   of  the 

^  St.  Matthew,  xi,  2-5.     St.  Luke,  vii,  18-23. 

^  The  exact  figures,  by  the  latest  statistics  available,  are: 
Hospitals  and  dispensaries,  430;  patients,  1,126,341.  Educa- 
tional institutions,  from  colleges  to  day  schools,  3,301;  pupils, 
88,635.  The  Roman  Catholic  Missions  would  doubtless  greatly 
increase  these  numbers.  There  is  believed  to  be  little  or  no 
foreign  effort  of  similar  character,  except  for  the  usual  object  of 
remuneration.  The  Japan  Year  Book  for  1908-9,  the  editor  of 
which  is  a  non-Christian,  says:  It  is  a  significant  fact  that  by  far 
the  greater  part  of  private  charity  work,  of  any  large  scope, 
is  conducted  by  Christians,  both  natives  and  aliens;  and  that 
the  part  played  by  Buddhists  in  this  direction  is  shamefully  out 
of  proportion  to  their  number.  As  to  Shintoists,  they  are  priv- 
ileged, in  popular  estimate,  to  keep  aloof  from  matters  of  this 
kind. 


76  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Kingdom,  and  healing  all  manner  of  sickness  and 
of  disease."  ^  But  men  brought  to  Christ  simply  as 
a  means  of  bettering  their  state,  who  will  follow  the 
Church  that  they  may  be  better  warmed  and  filled, 
will  turn  again  and  rend  her,  as  the  Jews  of  His  day 
crucified  Christ,  for  all  His  mighty  works. 

This  is  no  reason,  indeed,  that  the  Church  should 
do  one  work  of  benevolence  the  less.  As  St.  Bernard 
replied  to  the  devil,  who  would  have  him  stop  preach- 
ing, lest  he  be  made  vain  by  his  success,  "I  neither 
began  for  thee,  neither  will  I  cease  because  of  thee." 
The  Church  cares  for  the  bodies  of  men,  because 
Christ  so  gave  her  the  example,  —  that  she  may  be 
like  Him;  as  ingratitude  stopped  not  Him,  neither 
may  indifference  deter  her;  but  to  expect  the  world 
to  be  converted  by  these  means  is  futile.  After  the 
days  of  Constantine,  when  the  Church  had  loaves 
to  give,  the  world  flocked  to  her,  with  the  principal 
result  of  obscuring,  under  a  chaos  of  selfishness,  the 
selfless  devotion  which  has  never  failed  to  exist  within 
her,  and  which  alone  has  kept  her  alive;  for  it  has 
been  the  result  of  the  Power  of  God  in  action,  even 
as  was  Christ's  Resurrection  from  the  dead. 

In  this  hidden^  Power,  manifested  in  the  multi- 
tudes of  her  believing  children,  faithful  in  heart  and  in 
effort,  however  far  they  have  fallen  short  of  perfec- 
tion, the  Church  of  God  has  from  the  beginning  been 
to  the  Earth  as  salt,^  preserving,  and  with  its  flavor 
pervading  the  mass  in  which  it  rests  concealed; 
energizing  also,  as  leaven*  in  a  lump.     With  clear 

^  St.  Matthew,  iv,  23.         ^  Colossians,  iii,  3,  4. 
^  St.  Matthew,  v,  13.  *  Ibid.,  xiii,  t^;^. 


LIKENESS  77 


recognition  of  all  shortcoming,  individual  and  cor- 
porate, there  should  ever  be  coupled,  for  God's  glory 
and  our  own  heartening,  the  remembrance  of  the 
glorious  past  and  promising  present.  Could  all  the 
stars  be  blotted  out  from  the  firmament  of  heaven, 
and  in  the  blank  spaces  left  be  set  a  like  memorial 
for  each  departed  faithful  servant  of  Christ,  the  skies 
v^ould  recover  their  brilliancy;  and  we  could  con- 
ceive Almighty  God  again,  as  of  old,  leading  the  father 
of  the  faithful  from  his  tent  to  the  open  night,  saying, 
"Behold  the  fulfilment  of  the  promise,  *So  shall 
thy  seed  be;'  as  the  stars  of  heaven  for  multitude, 
and  as  the  sand  by  the  seashore  innumerable."  ^ 

The  stars  which  Abraham  with  his  unaided  vision 
saw  would  not  suffice  for  those  who  have  laid  down 
their  lives  for  Him  in  Whom  they  beheved;  nor  those 
which  the  telescope  reveals  for  them  who,  likewise 
unseen,  have  followed  with  equal  fidehty,  though 
not  to  a  martyr's  death.  The  illustrious  roll,  the 
historic  testimony,  of  those  who  have  fallen  in  the 
forefront  of  this  battle  of  the  ages,  stretches  in  long 
sequence  from  the  deacon  Stephen,  who  followed 
close  upon  his  Master's  footsteps  in  time,  closer  still 
in  likeness.  "Father,  forgive  them,"  the  Leader; 
"Lord,  lay  not  this  sin  to  their  charge,"^  the  fol- 
lower's dying  cry.  In  our  own  day,  within  fifty 
years,  two  at  least  of  the  leaders  of  the  host.  Bishops 
Patteson  and  Hannington,  taking  their  lives  in  their 
hands,  as  did  the  Twelve  and  the  Master,  have  met 
death  in  the  islands  of  the  Pacific,  and  in  Africa, 

^  Genesis,  xv,  5,  6;  xxii,  17.      Hebrew,  xi,  8-12. 
^  Acts,  vii,  59,  60. 


78  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

from  those  whom  they  sought  to  win  to  Christ;  and 
a  decade  has  not  passed  since  several  Christian  mis- 
sionaries with  thousands  of  their  Chinese  converts  fell 
steadfast  victims  to  their  devotion  to  His  service. 

Truly,  Christians  have  cause  to  be  proud  of 
their  nation,  and  of  its  past.  That  past  and  this 
present  are  the  night  time  of  the  Faith.  The  Sun  of 
Righteousness  ran  His  course  and  set  upon  the  world; 
but  we  know  that  He  shall  rise  again.  Meantime, 
this  generation  has,  not  only  above  but  around,  these 
tokens  of  the  fulfilment  of  His  Word  and  Work,  — 
the  leading  of  His  stars.  There  still  are  those  who 
have  borne,  and  are  bearing,  trial  intolerable  to  the 
habits  of  civihzation,  harder  than  the  momentary 
bitterness  of  death,  except  as  sweetened  by  love; 
love  to  the  Master  and  for  His  sake  to  His  brethren.^ 
There  lives  now,  and  for  near  ten  years  has  lived, 
within  the  Arctic  circle,  at  Point  Hope,  an  American 
physician,  latterly  in  deacon's  orders,  alone  among 
the  rude  natives,  and  often  disgusting  surroundings 
incident  to  barbarous  life  in  bitter  cold.  There  has 
but  lately  passed  away  an  English  bishop,  who,  while 
a  priest  in  his  early  thirties,  was  sent,  on  his  own 
volunteering,  to  the  same  peoples  in  Arctic  Canada. 
His  correspondence  tells,  rarely  and  uncomplainingly, 
of  what  the  refined  white  man  had  to  undergo;  but 
for  forty  years  — "unto  the  end  —  he  endured," 
dying  among  the  people  he  had  come  to  love,  at 
the  last  not  for  Christ's  sake  only,  as  men  love 
those  whom  they  have  helped;    helped  not  merely 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxv,  40.  St.  Mark,  iii,  33-35.  St.  John,  xx,  17. 
Hebrews,  ii,  11-18. 


LIKENESS  79 


spiritually,  though  that  first,  but,  again  hke  the 
Master,  they,  as  do  missionaries  in  all  parts,  carried 
with  the  message  of  the  Kingdom  and  the  King  the 
teaching  and  the  healing  with  which  He  in  the  olden 
time  went  about  in  Galilee/ 

"We  count  them  happy  which  endured."  ^  The 
judgment  is  that  of  Christianity,  of  Christ;  ^  not  of 
the  world.  Yet  how  true  it  is.  We  connect  the  name 
of  Washington  with  Boston,  Trenton,  Yorktown; 
we  speak  with  vague  approval  of  "the  times  that 
tried  men's  souls,"  having  that  taking  phrase  coined 
ready  to  our  use.  But  was  not  Washington  greater, 
nobler,  when  holding  together  his  beaten,  ragged, 
shoeless,  dirty  army  through  that  bitter,  squahd 
winter  at  Valley  Forge  than  when  he  received  the 
sword  of  Cornwallis  ?  Were  not  his  troops  more 
illustrious  in  those  months  of  endurance  than  when 
their  surrendered  opponents  filed  out  before  them 
and  laid  down  their  arms  .?  Doubtless,  many  men 
for  diverse  motives  have  willingly  endured  manifold 
sufferings;  but  the  distinguishing  mark  in  the  self- 
devotion  above  cited,  which  exceeds  even  the  high 
type  of  self  sacrifice  for  one's  own  country,  —  for, 
after  all,  that  is  one's  own,  —  is  that  it  has  been  ex- 
ercised for  others :  for  Christ,  to  make  Him  known 
to  those  for  whom  He  died,  and  to  bring  to  them 
the  relief  of  His  civilization. 

These,  however,  are  but  more  eminent  instances 
of  a   self-sacrificing   devotion   to  the  spread  of  the 

^  St.  Matthew,  iv,  23. 

^  St.  James,  v,  11.     i  St.  Peter,  iii,  14;  iv,  12-14. 

^  St.  Matthew,  v,  10-12;  x,  22;  xxiv,  13. 


8o  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Gospel,  which  is  in  daily  continuous  action  by  ever- 
increasing  numbers;  in  endurance  Hke  to  their 
Exemplar.  They  are  not  merely  instances,  but 
illustrations,  which  can  be  multiplied,  of  that  which 
is  called  the  missionary  spirit,  of  likeness  realized  to 
Christ,  the  first  missionary;  Who  was  "sent,"  as 
He  in  turn  "sent"  the  Twelve  and  St.  Paul,*  and 
by  His  lasting  commission  ^  has  been  "sending"  His 
servants  even  until  now.  In  emptying  Himself  of  His 
Divine  Glory,  taking  upon  Him  the  form  of  a  ser- 
vant,^ He  set  the  example  which  they  in  their  meas- 
ure have  striven  to  follow,  emptying  themselves  of 
most  that  men  count  dear,  that  in  so  doing  they 
may  be  like  Him.  To  us,  who  have  seen  these 
fulfilments  of  the  promise  to  Abraham,  the  meaning 
is  that  of  the  firmament  itself,  —  All  these  things 
hath  My  hand  made.*  As  the  celestial  universe 
bears  witness  to  the  Power  behind  it,  so  these  Hves, 
patterned  consciously  upon  that  of  Jesus  Christ, 
testify  to  the  inward  working  of  the  Power  of  Him 
who  died  and  rose  again. 

Nor  is  it  in  such  conspicuous  manner  only  that  the 
power  of  God  and  of  Christ  is  manifested,  —  to  the 
believer.  Who  among  us,  who  has  sought  himself 
to  pattern  his  life  upon  Christ's  example,  has  not 
known  many  another,  whom  the  world  knew  not,  in 
whom  could  be  clearly  seen  the  working  of  that  Power 
which  is  the  Life  of  the  Christian  .?  The  glory  of 
God,  and  of  the  Kingdom,  is  shown  as  truly  in  such 

^  St.  John,  XX,  21.     Acts,  ix,  15,  16;   xxii,  21;   xxvi,  15-18. 
^  St.  Matthew,  xxviii,  18-20.  ^  PhiHppians,  ii,  5-8. 

^  Isaiah,  xl,  26;  li,  6;  Ixvi,  i,  2;  Acts,  vii,  49,  50. 


LIKENESS  8 1 


as  in  the  deeds  of  the  noble  army  of  martyrs.  But 
to  recognize  them  one  must  be,  in  some  part  at  least, 
"  not  of  the  world."  ^  Whether  it  be  a  simple  want  of 
sympathy,  of  common  aims  and  feelings,  or  whether 
it  be  lack  of  the  spiritual  gift  to  the  "new  man, 
which  after  God  is  created  in  Christ  Jesus,"  ^  it 
remains  that  the  world  does  not  recognize  these 
followers  of  Christ,  because  it  knows  not  Him.^ 
They  are  there  in  abundance,  evidences  of  the  Life 
of  the  Christian,  of  the  Power  that  worketh ;  but  to 
note  them  there  must  be  likeness,  the  seeing  eye  of 
sympathy.  The  promise,  "When  He  shall  appear 
we  shall  be  like  Him,  for  we  shall  see  Him  as  He  is,"  * 
is  a  statement  of  correlatives;  if  vision  promotes 
likeness,  likeness  enables  vision.  If  in  measure  like 
Him,  we  shall  recognize  Him,  whenever  and  however 
He  comes.  Accordingly,  Jesus  Christ  said  to  a  group 
of  men,  who  were  listening  to  Him  attentively  :  "Why 
do  ye  not  understand  My  speech  ?  Because  ye  cannot 
hear  My  Word.  .  .  .  He  that  is  of  God  heareth  the 
words  of  God :  for  this  cause  ye  hear  them  not,  be- 
cause ye  are  not  of  God."  ^  For  perception  there 
must  be  an  inward  correspondence;  otherwise,  "  see- 
ing, ye  will  not  perceive,  and  hearing  ye  will  not 
understand."  ^ 

The  attitude  towards  Christ,  the  appreciation 
which  a  man  gives  to  Christ  Himself,  the  same  — 
not  other  —  will  he  give  to  those  who  are  Christ's.^ 

^  St.  John,  XV,  19-24;  xvii,  14-16. 

^  Ephesians,  ii,  9,  10;  iv,  23,  24.     Colossians,  ifi,  9,  10. 
^  I  St.  John,  iii,  i.  *  Ihid.^  iii,  2.     2  Corinthians,  iv,  3-6. 

^  St.  John,  viii,  43-47- 

®  Isaiah,  vi,  9,  10.    St.  Matthew,  xiii,  13.      '^  St.  John,  xv,  17-21. 

6 


82  THE   LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

If  he  sees  in  Christ  nothing  which  compels  his  alle- 
giance, he  naturally  cannot  appreciate  the  inferior 
degrees  of  excellence,  in  those  who,  whether  near  or 
far,  in  obscurity  or  in  the  bright  glare  of  conspicuous 
achievement,  are  following  in  the  Master's  footsteps. 
So  Goldwin  Smith,  in  the  letter  before  cited,  appreci- 
ating the  moral  excellence  of  Christ,  sees  that  "the 
efforts  to  realize  His  character,  being  carried  on 
under  all  the  various  moral  and  intellectual  condi- 
tions attaching  to  particular  men,  will  produce  an 
infinite  variety  of  characters,  personal  and  national; 
ranging  from  the  highest  human  grandeur  down  to 
the  very  verge  of  the  grotesque."  The  recognition  of 
moral  excellence  carries  the  recognition  of  the  moral 
results  in  other  men;  but,  revelation  being  rejected, 
there  can  be  of  course  no  appreciation  of  the  Divine 
Power  in  Christ,  and  consequently  none  of  its 
working  in  those  who  are  Christ's. 

Unless  we  keep  in  mind  the  attitude  of  the  world 
of  His  day  towards  Christ,  it  would  be  surprising 
how  far  blindness  towards  present  conditions  can  go. 
Many  decades  ago,  Guizot,  in  his  lectures  on  the 
History  of  Civilization,  thought  necessary  to  caution 
his  hearers  and  readers  against  depreciation,  and 
even  skepticism,  on  the  subject  of  disinterestedness. 
In  this  connection  he  cited  the  quixotic  —  as  it  would 
appear  to  many  —  mission  of  St.  Boniface  to  the 
Frisian  pagans,  who  rewarded  his  devotion  by  knock- 
ing him  on  the  head.  The  wisdom  of  this  world  will 
see  herein  only  the  folly  of  preaching;  not  knowing 
Christ,  it  cannot  commend  the  self-sacrifice  of  His 
servant.     Commonplace  though  the  remark  may  be, 


LIKENESS  83 


if  we  would  accurately  measure  the  significance  of 
the  world's  continuous  attitude  towards  Christianity, 
we  must  remember  that  nothing  is  narrower  than 
self-interest,  nothing  blinder  than  lack  of  sympathy. 
Nowhere  is  missionary  effort  more  bitterly  antago- 
nized than  by  nominal  Christians  in  missionary  fields; 
from  none  comes  more  enthusiastic  endorsement 
than  from  those  who,  though  not  missionaries,  have 
watched  the  work,  having  themselves  the  mind  of 
Christ.  I  remember  once,  mentioning  the  life  and 
martyrdom  of  Bishop  Patteson,  a  bystander  ejacu- 
lated, "What  a  shocking  waste  of  a  man's  life!" 
Doubtless,  he  would  have  said  the  same  of  Boniface, 
and  of  Christ  Himself,  in  His  day.  Yet  the  story  of 
the  Pacific  Islands  vindicates  the  disciple  and  his 
fellow-workers,  as  the  history  of  Europe  does  their 
Lord. 

Max  Miiller,  as  a  student  of  Comparative  Religion, 
has  said  that  the  mark  of  a  living  religion  is  its  mis- 
sionary spirit.  Certainly  it  is  true  that  any  system 
of  thought  which  has  life  must  seek  to  propagate 
itself;  be  dynamic,  not  merely  static;  and  so  mis- 
sionary effort  indicates  life  in  the  body.  The  rapidly 
increasing  volume  of  such  effort  put  forth  by  Chris- 
tianity, and  the  bitterness  of  antagonism  excited, 
less  among  the  heathen  than  in  Christian  lands, 
alike  testify  to  the  working  of  inward  motives 
and  of  hidden  powers,  on  the  one  hand  and  on  the 
other.  The  battle  between  Christ  and  the  rulers  of 
the  darkness  of  this  world  ^  increases  in  intensity. 

^  St.  Luke,  xxii,  53.  St.  John,  xii,  31,  32;  xiv,  30;  xvi,  11. 
Ephesians,  vi,  10-20.     Colossians,  ii,  15. 


84  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Whatever  may  be  said  of  the  general  Christian  mo- 
tive, it  cannot  by  candid  men  be  ascribed  to  self- 
interest,  narrowly  interpreted.  At  worst,  it  is  the 
propaganda  of  a  strong  conviction;  but  of  that  con- 
viction the  only  account  is  the  Cross  and  Resurrec- 
tion of  Jesus  Christ;  His  Person  and  His  Mission. 
As  it  was  in  the  beginnings,  so  is  it  now;  Jesus 
Christ,  Him  crucified  and  risen  again,  is  both  message 
and  motive.  The  first  Apostles  preached  Jesus  and 
the  Resurrection :  ^  the  Personality  and  Mission, 
implied  in  the  Name,  and  the  fact  and  meaning  of 
the  Resurrection.  The  two  comprise  the  summary 
of  Christian  teaching :  on  the  moral  side,  the  Person, 
the  object  of  love;  on  the  intellectual,  the  Resurrec- 
tion, as  the  evidence. 

To  the  believer,  of  course,  the  growing  activity  is 
proof  of  the  working  of  His  Power,  which  wrought 
in  the  Resurrection  itself.  But  this  present  working 
has  brought  prominently  to  light  a  very  extraordinary 
feature  in  the  history  of  Christianity;  one  that 
should,  and  possibly  may,  convince  the  world  by  the 
means  which  the  Lord  prayed.^  The  aroused  pur- 
pose to  spread  the  Kingdom  of  Christ  has  brought 
Christian  men  to  realize,  as  never  before,  how  truly 
they  are  one  in  all  the  great  essentials  of  the  Faith. 
If,  formally,  the  Body  of  Christ  shows  divisions, 
upon  lines  which,  however  important  otherwise,  are 
clearly  secondary;  if,  in  a  formal  sense,  we  are  de- 
barred from  the  Apostle's  assertion,  "there  is  one 
Body;"   we  none  the  less  can  take  up  exultingly  the 

*  Acts,  iii,  13-16;  iv,  2,  10-12;  xvii,  18. 
^  St.  John,  xvii,  20,  21. 


LIKENESS  85 


remainder  of  his  cry:  One  spirit,  even  as  ye  are 
called  in  one  hope  of  your  calHng;  one  Lord,  one 
Faith,  one  Baptism,  one  God  and  Father  of  all.^ 

This  recognition  of  unity  is  the  direct  outcome  of 
the  mission  field,  where  indeed,  under  the  pressure 
of  the  surroundings,  it  has  been  found  in  the  fullest 
measure.  In  the  methods  of  missionary  work  the 
likeness  to  Christ  is  most  apparent,  because  the  work 
itself  is  most  like  His  own  :  the  carrying  of  a  message 
new  to  those  who  hear  it.  As  He  Himself  was  the 
first  of  Christian  Missionaries,  "sent"  by  the  Father; 
as  He  Himself  "sent"  the  Twelve  into  all  the  world 
with  a  commission  enduring  to  the  end  of  time;  so 
the  corporate  missionary  work  of  the  Christian 
Church  embodies  all  those  activities  which  were 
most  preeminently  His,  —  preaching,  teaching,  heal- 
ing. The  Church  the  Body,  He  the  Head.^  Missions 
have  been  to  the  Church  what  the  colonies  and  India 
have  been  to  Great  Britain;  the  outward  effort  has 
reacted  on  the  mother  countries  in  broadening 
vision  and  quickening  enterprise.  The  harm  and 
folly  of  divisions,  too  easily  accepted  at  home  as  a 
state  of  things  neither  remediable  nor  entirely  evil, 
became  glaringly  manifest  in  the  face  of  those  to 
whom  the  missionary  was  sent  as  to  enemies;  as 
Christ  went  to  enemies,  to  win  them  to  Himself.^ 

The  mission  field  is  the  forefront  of  the  battle; 
there  it  is  necessary  that  the  war-cry  be  one,  that 
men  speak  with  one  tongue,  and  behold  !  they  can. 
The  formal  divisions,  it  is  true,  remain,  and  on  the 

^  Ephesians,  iv,  3-6.  ^  Ihid.,  i,  22,  23. 

^  Romans,  v,  8-10.    Ephesians,  if,  1-5.    Colossians,  i,  21,  22. 


86  THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

old  lines.  Men  must  continue  to  hold  truth  as  it  is 
given  them  to  see  it;  but  they  speak  it  increasingly 
"in  love,'*  ^  the  phrase  of  St.  Paul's  which  contains 
the  ultimate  solution  of  our  difficulties  on  this  score. 
Hoping  for  a  fuller  visible  union  which  as  yet  we  see 
not,  we  can  well  with  patience  wait  for  it.  Consider- 
ing the  visible  gain  in  spiritual  motive  that  has  come 
over  us,  we  shall  not  be  forward  to  pluck  the  ripen- 
ing fruit  of  union  before  it  matures.  But,  remem- 
bering the  bitter  controversies  of  the  past,  it  is  truly 
a  marvelous  thing  that  throughout  these  there  has 
been  preserved,  in  each  one  of  the  warring  fragments 
of  Christ's  Body,  the  great  essentials  of  the  Faith; 
constituting  an  essential  likeness,  because  preserv- 
ing in  each  the  reflection  of  Christ.^ 

The  prophet  who  closes  the  canon  of  the  Old 
Testament,  speaking  beforehand  of  Him  and  of  His 
work,  says.  He  shall  sit  as  a  refiner  and  purifier  of 
silver.^  The  refiner  of  that  time  knew  his  process 
completed  when  the  molten  metal  reflected  the 
clear  unblemished  likeness  of  the  workman's  face. 
Had  no  separations  occurred,  or  in  separation  no 
bitterness,  it  might  have  seemed  less  wonderful  that, 
when  the  great  missionary  bodies  of  Christendom 
came  to  look  one  another  in  the  face  as  brethren, 
they  found  their  essential  likeness,  in  that  they  had 
the  one  message  and  the  one  foundation :  *  The 
Person  of  Jesus  Christ;  His  Eternal  Power  and  God- 
head; His  Incarnation,  Life,  Teaching,  Character; 
His  Cross  and  His  Resurrection;    the  Person  and 

^  Ephesians,  iv,  15.      ^2  Corinthians,  iii,  18.     ^  Malachi,  iii,  1-3. 
*  I  Corinthians,  iii,  10-15.     Ephesians,  ii,  20. 


LIKENESS  87 


Mission  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Had  not  God  been  in 
the  midst  of  His  people  ^  throughout  all  the  dissen- 
sions of  Christendom,  some  of  this  surely  must  have 
been  lost;  with  it  saved,  nothing  is  lost  finally. 
Time  indeed  has  been  wasted,  and  opportunity; 
and  both  continue  to  be  measurably  lost  while  formal 
division  remains;  but  there  is  such  a  thing  as  re- 
deeming the  time,  and  the  more  so  while  the  evil 
days  of  outward  division  still  mar  that  visible  per- 
fect unity,  which  shall  be  the  token  to  the  world  that 
the  Father  has  sent  His  Son  to  be  its  Saviour.^ 

Meanwhile,  to  those  who  can  receive  it,  the  unity 
that  has  been  made  visible  in  these  latter  days  is 
the  evidence  of  the  working  of  that  mighty  Power 
which  raised  up  Christ  from  the  dead,  and  which 
through  the  ages  has  been  the  Life,  alike  of  the 
Christian  man  and  of  the  Christian  Church. 

*  Psalm,  xlvf. 

2  St.  John,  iii,  17;  xii,  47.     i  St.  John,  iv,  9-14. 


CHAPTER  III 
INTERCOURSE 

CONSIDERING  the  existing  divisions  of 
Christianity,  and  the  unhappy  human  bitter- 
ness by  which  their  relations  have  too  often 
been  marked,  there  is  evident  the  great  effect  that 
must  have  been  exerted  upon  the  v^elfare  of  the 
Christian  Body  by  the  maintenance  among  its  mem- 
bers of  the  personal  Christian  Life,  patterned  upon 
that  of  Jesus  Christ.  Through  this  faithfulness  in 
the  past,  God  has  been  enabled  to  sustain  a  spirit 
v^hich  not  only  has  survived  strife  and  bitterness, 
but  has  consecrated  the  successive  periods  of  Chris- 
tian history,  and  nov^  finds  prevalent  so  much  accord 
of  faith,  of  hope,  and  of  love,  as  brightens  to-day 
v^ith  promise  for  to-morrow.  This  happy  issue  in- 
tensifies the  duty  of  each  individual  Christian  to 
do  all  that  in  him  hes  to  nourish  in  himself  person- 
ally the  life  of  Christ  in  full  vigor. 

In  the  fourth  chapter  of  his  Epistle  to  the  Ephe- 
sians,  the  admonitions  of  St.  Paul  pass  back  and 
forth  between  the  corporate  and  the  individual  life. 
Many  of  the  precepts  are  applicable  to  both  indiffer- 
ently; and  the  consummation,  that  "we  all  attain 
unto  a  full  grown  man,  unto  the  measure  of  the 
stature  of  the  fullness  of  Christ,*'  while  primarily 
applicable  to  the  whole  Body,  in  its  organic  unity, 

88 


INTERCOURSE  89 


is  also  clearly  dependent  in  the  Apostle's  thought 
upon  the  steadfast  fulfilment  by  each  individual  of 
his  allotted  part.  "The  working  in  due  measure  of 
each  several  part  maketh  the  increase  of  the  Body 
unto  the  building  up  of  itself  in  love."  Thus 
supported,  the  life  of  the  Christian,  in  man  and 
in  Church,  will  be  characterized  by  likeness  to  God 
and  to  Jesus  Christ,  the  common  source  from  which 
in  each  it  derives.  "To  know  Thee,  the  only 
true  God,  and  Jesus  Christ  Whom  Thou  hast  sent, 
is  Life  Eternal'*  now,  by  Christ's  own  definition;^ 
and  only  by  growth  in  such  knowledge  shall  be 
realized  unto  us  the  prayer  of  St.  Paul  for  his  Philip- 
pian  converts,  "that  ye  be  like  minded,  having  the 
same  love,  being  of  one  accord,  of  one  mind,"  ^  or 
purpose.  Or,  as  he  elsewhere  says,  "beholding  as 
in  a  mirror  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  we  are  changed 
into  the  same  image  from  glory  to  glory."  ^ 

These  two  ideas  of  the  Body  and  of  the  members,^ 
together  with  the  basic  truth  —  the  operation  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  —  upon  which  effectiveness  depends, 
are  voiced  in  one  of  the  short  prayers  that  have  come 
down  to  us  from  ancient  times,  with  the  terseness 
and  compactness  which  characterizes  so  much  of 
those  remarkable  growths,  the  liturgies;  indications, 
possibly,  that  only  the  fittest  survived  the  test  of 
usage.  In  the  accepted  English  version  it  runs :  By 
Thy  Spirit  the  whole  Body  of  the  Church  is  governed 
and  sanctified.  Receive  [therefore]  our  supplications 
and  prayers,  which  we  make  before  Thee,  for  all 

*  St.  John,  xvii,  3.  ^  Philippians,  ii,  2. 

^  2  Corinthians,  iii,  18.  *  i  Corinthians,  xii,  12,  13. 


90  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

estates  of  men  in  Thy  Holy  Church;  that  every 
Member  of  the  same  in  his  vocation  and  ministry 
[calHng  and  service]  may  truly  and  godly  serve  Thee. 
This  Collect,  the  second  for  Good  Friday,  starts 
with  the  recognition  of  the  Body,  and  of  its  depend- 
ence upon  the  Holy  Ghost  for  guidance  and  de- 
velopment. Thence  it  descends  to  the  collective 
orders  —  estates  —  of  men  within  the  Church;  as, 
for  instance,  lay  and  clerical,  or  the  several  grades 
of  the  ministry.  Then  it  recalls  before  God  specific- 
ally each  member  of  every  order;  for,  if  one  member 
suffer,  each  suffers,^  and  the  Body  collectively.  It 
is  instructive  to  note  too,  as  illustrative  of  the  care 
used  in  wording  the  liturgies,  that  "governed" 
(guided)  and  "sanctified"  correspond  precisely, 
in  meaning  as  in  order,  to  vocation  and  ministry. 
A  calling  requires  especially  guidance;  service,  par- 
ticularly consecration.  So  also  calling  must  be 
"true"  in  direction;   service  "godly"  in  spirit. 

Nothing  tends  to  likeness  more  than  does  con- 
genial association ;  and  association  implies  inter- 
course, whence  flows  the  close  and  comprehensive 
knowledge  of  which  Jesus  Christ  speaks  in  the 
words  above  quoted.  In  no  way  can  we  so  know 
a  man  as  by  intimate  companionship  with  him;  the 
cynical  proverb  that  no  man  is  a  hero  to  his  valet 
has  its  obverse  side,  when  he  who  is  known  is  also 
worthy.  From  such  relations  springs  also  influence. 
The  effect  of  comrades  —  not  to  speak  of  parents  — 
upon  childhood  and  youth  is  notorious;  and,  in  the 
sober  self-appreciation  of  experience,  we   all  must 

^  I  Corinthians,  xii,  26-30. 


INTERCOURSE  91 


acknowledge  ourselves  to  have  been  at  each  period 
of  our  Hves,  and  still  to  be,  the  immature  creatures 
which  in  God's  eyes  we  are,  ever  learning,  yet  so 
slowly  coming  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth.  It  is 
startling  in  old  age,  when  the  promised  light  of 
evening  tide  ^  begins  to  shine,  to  recognize  how  the 
tone,  the  accepted  plausible  maxims,  of  this  world 
have  blinded  the  eyes  to  the  precepts  —  the  express 
precepts,  as  well  as  the  example  —  of  Jesus  Christ; 
how  little  we  have  been  like  Him,  because  we  have 
not  adequately  known  Him. 

It  is  thus  only,  by  constant  association  and  inti- 
mate knowledge,  as  a  man  knows  a  friend,  that  we 
can  grow  like  to  God;  ^  and  such  association,  in  the 
case  of  One  unseen,  implies  an  effort,  by  which  in- 
tercourse is  maintained,  as  that  with  a  distant  friend 
is  maintained  by  correspondence.  The  simile  is  as 
nearly  exact,  perhaps,  as  any  comparison  between 
the  human  and  the  Divine  can  be;  but  it  fails  in 
two  particulars.  God  is  not  distant;  and  this  inter- 
course is  not  between  equals,  but  between  the  less 
and  the  Greater,  the  creature  and  the  Creator,  the 
finite  and  the  Infinite;  happily  also  between  the 
child  and  the  Father. 

Intercourse  implies  mutual  action,  interaction; 
what  in  general  we  style  communion,  —  something 
had  or  done  in  common.  In  the  Christian  scheme 
the  primary  provision  for  such  intercourse  is  in  the 
two  Sacraments  ordained  by  Christ  Himself,  —  Bap- 
tism   and    the    Holy    Communion.      Baptism,    the 

^  Zechariah,  xiv,  6,  7.  Compare  2  Timothy,  iv,  6-8.  Revela- 
tion, xxii,  1-5.  2  2  Corinthians,  iii,  18. 


92  THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

Sacrament  of  the  new  Birth,  of  Repentance  accepted, 
though  administered  once  for  all,  is  valid  and  opera- 
tive throughout  life;  conditioned  always  upon  that 
earnest  striving  after  better  things  which  is  repent- 
ance sustained  in  action.  Without  this  the  new 
birth  ends  in  spiritual  death;  the  man  is  cut  off  as 
a  fruitless  branch,  and  withers.^  To  Baptism  man 
brings  repentance,  which  rightly  understood  is  the 
gift  of  himself,  of  his  life  and  powers,  to  God ;  God 
in  return  gives  the  spiritual  life,  in  Jesus  Christ,  — 
the  Life  of  the  Christian.  This  is  Intercourse.  The 
Holy  Communion,  prefaced  always  by  renewed  acts 
of  repentance  and  Faith,  is  the  perpetual  transmis- 
sion of  the  Life  of  Jesus  Christ,  imparted  once  for 
all  in  Baptism.  It  is  the  highest  realization  of  Inter- 
course, of  a  reciprocal  action  essential  to  the  Chris- 
tian's Life;  which  apart  from  this  cannot  but 
languish   and   in   the   end   cease. 

To  treat  adequately  these  highest  mysteries  of 
the  Christian  Faith  requires  a  breadth  and  depth 
of  knowledge  which  I  lack.  In  the  simplicity  of 
their  definition  they  lie  within  the  fruitful  .appre- 
hension of  the  unlearned;  but  to  comprehend  them, 
to  the  full  scope  even  of  instructed  human  faculties, 
demands  a  profundity  and  extent  of  knowledge, 
and  of  reflection,  with  a  power  of  balanced  expres- 
sion, to  which  few  can  pretend.  I  purpose  therefore 
to  limit  my  considerations  to  the  simpler  forms  of 
Intercourse  with  God  through  Jesus  Christ;  to 
Prayer,  Praise,  Thanksgiving,  and  the  reading  of 
God's  Word,  commonly  called  the  Bible.  These 
*  St.  John,  XV,  2,  6. 


INTERCOURSE  93 


four  are  essential  parts  of  any  complete  system  of 
Intercourse;  as  such  they  are  found  represented  in 
all  well-conceived  formularies  of  pubhc  worship, 
as  well  as  in  the  private  devotions  of  a  symmetrical 
Christian  life,  which  itself  is  a  perpetual  worship. 

Of  these  I  take  first  Praise;  partly  because, 
rightly  understood,  it  is  the  leading  feature  in  Chris- 
tian worship,  being  the  recognition  of  the  excellence 
—  the  worth-ship  —  of  God,  particularly  as  mani- 
fested to  us  in  and  by  Jesus  Christ.  Logically, 
indeed,  in  order  of  time  as  of  importance,  Praise 
precedes  Prayer  and  Thanksgiving;  for  Praise  is 
but  the  outcome  of  the  knowledge  of  God,  and, 
without  knowledge  of  Him,  how  shall  we  pray  to 
Him,  or  give  thanks  .?  Praise  is  the  act  of  devotion 
into  which  Self  enters  least,  because  it  fastens  upon 
the  Person  of  God  —  which  is  His  excellence  —  and 
disregards  the  person,  the  needs,  and  even  the  grati- 
tude of  the  worshipper,  who  for  the  moment,  and 
to  his  own  consciousness,  is  engaged  only  in  con- 
templating the  beauty,  power,  and  worthiness  of 
the  Character  revealed  to  him.  Yet,  though  un- 
consciously. Praise  has  its  element  of  Prayer,  as 
will  be  noted;  as  it  also  more  obviously  is  akin  to 
Thanksgiving. 

A  further  reason  for  giving  Praise  a  primacy  of 
treatment  is  that  it  is  more  pervertedly  an  object 
of  misconception  than  the  other  elements  of  wor- 
ship; a  misconception  entirely  superficial,  quite 
unworthy  of  an  intelligent  creature,  but  still  ex- 
istent and  general.  I  will  illustrate  by  an  incident 
in   my   experience.      Over  thirty  years   ago    I   was 


94  THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

sitting  on  the  porch  of  a  summer  hotel  in  the  com- 
pany of  an  elderly  man,  much  my  senior.  A  lad  of 
fifteen  was  talking  to  us,  and  in  some  connection,  now 
forgotten   by   me,  spoke   of  praising   God.    "Well, 

,"said  my  companion,  "if  the  Lord  is  as  good  a 

fellow  as  I  take  Him  to  be.  He  will  not  care  to  be 
praised." 

In  this  manifest  confounding  of  praise  with  com- 
pliment, deference  and  unreadiness  kept  me  from 
the  reply,  which  is  obvious.  God  does  not  care  for 
our  praises,  in  the  sense  of  personal  eulogy;  as 
such  merely,  they  add  nothing  to  Him;  but  the  sin- 
cere and  loving  contemplation  of  excellence,  and 
recognition  of  it  —  which  is  the  essence  of  Praise  — 
react  upon  the  character  of  him  who  praises,  and 
tend  strongly  to  induce  in  him  that  imitation  and 
likeness  —  in  this  case  to  God  —  which  is  the  great 
aim  of  God  concerning  us.  In  that  way,  not  by  the 
mere  utterance  of  words,  but  by  the  accompanying 
transformation  of  ideals  and  character,  our  praises 
may  well  be  pleasing  to  God ;  we  may  even  reverently 
say  He  wants  them.  He  needs  them.  Through 
them  largely  —  in  their  essence  through  them  only  — 
is  accomplished  His  Will,  which  is  that  we  be  per- 
fect. In  this  way  Praise  involves  inevitably  aspira- 
tion ;  and  aspiration  is  Prayer,  uttered  or  unexpressed. 
True  Praise  therefore  involves  prayer,  as  a  whole 
embraces  its  parts.  Thus  the  two  chief  examples 
of  Praise  in  the  Prayer  Book,  outside  the  Psalter, 
the  Te  Deum  and  the  Gloria  in  Excelsis,  although 
beginning  in  pure  praise,  in  their  course  turn  with  a 
certain  inevitableness  to  prayer. 


INTERCOURSE  95 


A  proper  illustration  to  the  lad  in  the  case  might 
have  been  such  as  this.  You  have  heard  of  George 
Washington  ?  of  his  character,  his  disinterested- 
ness, courage,  patriotism;  his  endurance  in  the  dark 
hours;  the  ultimate  victory  that  his  worthiness  won 
over  foe  and  over  friend  ?  for  the  closer  friend 
knew  him,  the  more  he  esteemed  him.  There  is 
but  one  answer  to  these  questions  for  an  American 
boy.  Well,  you  would  like  to  be  such  a  man  as  that, 
would  you  not  ?  The  more  you  think  of  him  the 
stronger  the  wish  .?  This  perhaps  would  be  getting 
beyond  a  boy's  depth;  but  for  a  man  who  has  put 
away  childish  things,  this  influence  of  great  char- 
acters upon  ideals,  yielding  in  many  cases  a  real 
upHfting  of  the  Ufe,  should  be  a  matter  of  experience, 
or  at  least  of  observation.  Such  regard  for  a  person, 
and  such  result,  are  Praise  in  operation.  The  man 
who  makes  Washington  his  ideal  praises  him;  and 
the  more  he  meditates  upon  him,  or  carries  thought 
into  action,  the  truer  the  praise.  It  is  so  of  Nelson, 
who  like  Washington,  —  both  men  with  frailties,  — 
is  thus  a  hving  force  in  the  lives  of  men  to-day.  Will 
it  be  less  with  the  Creator  than  with  His  creatures  ? 

But,  more  still.  Praise  is  the  natural  expression  of 
love,  where  the  object  is  worthy.  Even  for  those  who 
have  passed  into  the  unseen,  and  are  known  to  us 
only  by  their  record,  there  may  be  aroused  an  enthu- 
siasm little  short  of  personal  affection,  well  deserv- 
ing the  name  of  love.  Though  dead,  they  yet  speak. 
Direct  communion  with  them  we  have  not,  yet  such 
as  we  have  tells.  But  God  lives,  and  Jesus  Christ; 
not  far  off,  but  near;   not  resting  from  labors,  as  do 


96  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

those,  but  working;  above  all,  loving  us  and  wanting 
our  love.  Can  we  love  and  be  silent  in  our  hearts  ? 
but  if  our  hearts  speak  love  He  hears,  though  the 
lips  move  not;  and  the  love  is  dear  to  Him.  How 
should  it  not  be,  if  we  are  created  in  His  image  .? 
Have  not  we  joy  in  being  loved,  valued  by  those  we 
love  .?  Loving  is  more  and  better  than  giving;  being 
is  better  than  doing.  Praise  is  not  flattery.  God  is 
not  praised  in  order  to  induce  Him  to  grant.  To 
that  end  there  is  an  appointed  means;  but  it  is 
Prayer,  not  Praise.  God  is  praised  for  that  which 
He  is,  and  for  that  which  He  has  done,  irrespective 
of  self. 

If,  then,  Praise  be  of  the  heart,  why  formulate 
words  of  praise  ?  Partly  because  the  truth  will  out; 
the  abundance  of  the  heart  will  speak,  and  it  speaks 
most  effectively  in  words  well  weighed  and  measured. 
Besides,  by  a  law  of  our  nature,  a  habit  of  mind  will 
issue  in  a  habit  of  words,  which  are  the  expression  of 
thought;  and  a  habit  of  words  is  a  form.  Again,  in 
this  world,  life  for  its  preservation  and  action  requires 
to  be  embodied  in  forms.  Forms  are  essential  to  the 
preservation  of  spirit.  Forms  preserve  obedience, 
reverence,  duties,  mutual  respect  and  consideration. 
The  virtue  of  institutions  is  in  their  spirit,  but  no 
institution  can  survive  formal  disuse.  Most  of  all, 
God  being  unseen,  and  knowable  only  through  His 
Word  and  Works,  we  must  be  at  pains  to  analyze 
and  formulate  to  ourselves,  in  somewhat  definite  ex- 
pression, that  knowledge  of  God  which  it  is  the  office 
of  biography  to  give  us  concerning  men. 

The   presentation   of  personality,    indeed,    is   the 


INTERCOURSE  97 


great  service  of  biography.  The  Hves  of  men  are  of 
varied  utility.  Some  serve  for  emulation,  some  for 
w^arning,  all  for  instruction;  but,  that  they  may  so 
serve,  the  teachings  must  be  appropriated,  made  our 
own  by  familiarity  with  them,  a  process  which  in- 
volves effort,  conscious  or  unconscious,  sufficient  to 
produce  a  definite  and  well  proportioned  image. 
This  is  the  task  of  the  biographer,  which  the  reader 
must  supplement  by  attention.  Character  is  not 
appreciated  fully,  except  as  the  features  are  clearly 
drawn  out  and  the  several  traits  named  and  illus- 
trated by  the  revelations  of  the  life.  The  like  must 
be  done  if  we  would  truly  know  God,  and  He  being 
all  excellence  the  result  is  Praise;  which,  however 
real  and  from  the  heart,  will  tend  to  the  habit  which 
we  call  formal. 

Thus,  the  foundation  of  Praise  is  the  knowledge 
of  God.  This  is  the  root  whence  the  flower  springs. 
How  then  shall  we  know  God  with  that  intimacy  of 
knowledge  which  alone  deserves  the  name .?  To 
give  direction  to  the  efforts  which  are  necessary  to 
this  end,  let  us  realize  that  we  can  know  Him  only 
if  we  will  use  His  biography;  His  own  revelation  of 
His  Person  and  His  Character,  in  His  Acts  and  in 
His  Words.  He  will  doubtless  deal  directly  with 
every  man  according  to  His  purposes,  unfolding  Him- 
self within ;  ^  but  upon  the  condition  common  to  all 
advance,  natural  or  spiritual,  that  the  man  in  turn 
will  use  appointed  means. ^     His  revelation  is  given 

^  St.  John,  xiv,  21-23.     Revelation,  iii,  20.    Ephesians,  iii,  17. 
Philippians,  ii,  13. 

^  St.  John,  vi,  53,  54.     Philippians,  ii,  12.     Galatians,  vi,  7-9. 

7 


98  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

through  two  media :  the  written  Word  which  we  call 
the  Bible,  and  the  living  Word/  Jesus  Christ,  of 
Whom  the  written  word  is  the  testimony,^  the  pale 
reflection  of  His  Eternal  glory.^  In  a  treatment  of 
Worship,  therefore,  the  natural  transition  is  from 
Praise  to  the  means  through  which  we  learn  the  mo- 
tive and  the  matter  of  Praise:  to  the  reading  and 
hearing  of  God's  Word,  in  the  varied  expansion  of 
these  processes,  which  involve  all  that  God  can 
minister  to  us  through  other  men,  as  well  as  directly 
to  ourselves.  Preaching  and  devotional  literature 
are  fitting  and  logical  extensions  of  the  Word  of 
God. 

We  can  use  means.  We  could  not  have  originated 
communion  with  God,  but  we  can  comply  with  the 
conditions  of  further  and  perpetual  communion. 
The  necessary  beginning  of  Intercourse,  its  primary 
stage,  is  for  God  to  communicate  to  us.  He  did  so 
in  the  beginning,  by  constituting  our  nature  such 
that  we  could  receive  knowledge  of  Him.  He  con- 
tinued to  impart  knowledge,  as  the  race  was  able 
to  receive  it;  ^  by  direct  revelation,  —  immediately, 
—  as  to  Abraham,  or  mediately  by  His  messengers, 
Moses  and  the  Prophets.  He  fulfilled  all  by  the 
revelation  of  Himself  in  a  human  Life  —  the  Life  of 

*  St.  John,  i,  1-14.     I  St.  John,  i,  1-4. 

^  Revelation,  xix,  10.  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  16,  17.  St.  Luke,  x, 
23,  24;  xxiv,  25-27.  St.  John,  v,  39,  45-47-  Acts,  iii,  22-25; 
xiii,  27-29,  32-41.  Hebrews,  i,  5-13;  v,  5,  6;  ix,  1-15.  I  St. 
Peter,  i,  10-12. 

^  St.  John,  viii,  58;   xvii,  5,  24.    PhiHppians,  ii,  5-8. 

*  Collate  Exodus,  vi,  3,  with  St.  Matthew,  xxviii,  19.  St.  Mat- 
thew, xix,  7,  8.  St.  John,  xvi,  12-15.  i  Corinthians,  ii,  13,  14; 
iii,  2.     Hebrews,  v,  11-14. 


INTERCOURSE  99 


Christ;  ^  and  by  Him  He  promised  further  guidance, 
"into  all  truth,"  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  Whose  coming 
should  follow  Christ's  departure  and  Who  should 
abide  with  us  forever.^  It  may  reasonably  be  be- 
lieved that  He  continues  still  to  reveal  to  the  individ- 
ual, and  to  the  body  we  call  the  Church,  as  each  may 
need;  but  it  is  unreasonable,  even  irrational,  to  ex- 
pect that  He  will  do  so  where  there  is  neglect  of  the 
medium  through  which  He  has  chosen  to  make  Him- 
self known  to  us.  In  the  revealed  Word  He  supplies, 
as  it  were,  the  raw  material,  which  under  the  joint 
operation  of  man's  effort  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit  is 
wrought  into  the  particular  guidance,  which  con- 
stitute the  daily  revelation  and  providence  that  each 
man  and  each  Church  needs. 

Dr.  Johnson  observed  truly  that  the  first  con- 
dition of  successful  biography  is  close  personal 
intercourse;  and  the  remark  received  striking  illus- 
tration, by  the  hearer  of  it  producing  the  most  vivid 
presentation  of  a  human  personality  that  the  English 
language  has  achieved.  We  know  Johnson  as  we 
know  no  other  man  of  his  time,  because  we  have 
been  brought  thus  into  a  contact  with  him  which  is 
the  nearest  possible  short  of  immediate  acquaintance. 
Only  autobiography,  if  absolutely  sincere,  as  may  be 
the  case  where  copious  correspondence  remains,  can 
be  more  satisfying  to  the  desire  to  know  a  man.  If 
a  man  has  written  much  and  frankly  to  many  people, 
there  will  almost  certainly  transpire  an  abundance  of 

^  St.  John,  xlv,  7-1 1 ;  xii,  45.    Colossians,  i,  15.    Hebrews,  i,  3. 
^  St.  John,  xiv,  16,  17,  25,  26;  XV,  26;  xvi,  7-15.    See  Romans, 
viii.     I  Corinthians,  ii,  9-13.     i  St.  John,  iii,  24;   iv,  13. 


100         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

evidence  as  to  his  real  self.  Interested  readers  will 
receive  an  impression  which  will  correspond  to  the 
truth,  be  true  in  part;  but  in  part  only,  because  such 
impression  is  inevitably  modified  by  the  character- 
istics of  the  reader,  just  as  a  painter  reads  himself 
into  a  portrait.  Autobiography  thus  imparted  is 
better  than  the  best  biography;  because  the  impres- 
sion so  derived,  the  portrait  thus  drawn,  is  the 
reader's  own  achievement,  bone  of  his  bone,  flesh  of 
his  flesh,  and  therefore  more  real  to  him  than  any 
secondary  acquisition  made  through  another  man's 
portrayal. 

Autobiography  is  that  which  God  has  given  us  in 
the  Bible.  In  old  time  He  spoke  by  divers  portions 
and  in  divers  manners,^  in  the  Prophets,  and  in  the 
Law,  which  together  sum  up  substantially  the  Old 
Testament;  and  in  the  end  of  those  days  He  spoke 
again  in  —  not  merely  hy  —  a  Son.^  That  is,  God 
has  given  us  an  abundant  correspondence,  of  which 
He  is  the  Author,  addressed  to  many  persons  under 
many  conditions;  and  in  addition  He  has  spoken 
in  2L  Son,  in  the  Son's  Life,^  not  by  His  Words  only. 
The  character  of  Jesus  Christ  is  the  replica  of  the 
character  of  God  revealed  in  the  Old  Testament. 
The  two  are  drawn  by  the  same  hand;  a  considera- 
tion which  gives  double  force  to  Christ's  statement 
that  He  came  to  fulfil  —  not  to  destroy  —  the  Law 
and  the  Prophets.^  The  picture  of  God  drawn  in  the 
Law  and  the  Prophets  is  accurate  as  far  as  it  goes; 
that  is,  it  is  truth,  but  not  yet  the  full  truth.     This 

^  Hebrews,  i,  i.  ^  Ibid.,  I,  2-4. 

^  St.  John,  i,  4,  14,  18.  *  St.  Matthew,  v,  17. 


INTERCOURSE  loi 

it  could  not  be,  because  the  various  writers,  severally 
or  collectively,  were  not  able  fully  to  receive  or  fully 
to  convey  the  communications  addressed  to  them  by 
God.^  They  could  not  receive,  because  they  were  of 
their  time,  though  head  and  shoulders  above  it; 
they  could  not  convey,  because  their  hearers,  to 
whom,  through  them,  the  correspondence  was  ulti- 
mately addressed,  were  even  less  capable  of  compre- 
hension than  themselves.  The  old  writers  labored 
under  the  disabilities  of  painters  in  the  early  history 
of  art. 

In  His  self-revelation  God  could  not  rise  above 
such  conditions;  because  He  could  not  violate  the 
nature  of  man,  as  constituted  by  Himself  in  His 
purpose  to  bring  many  sons  to  glory  —  or  to  perfec- 
tion.^ The  process  of  education,  the  bringing  natural 
capacities,  possibilities,  to  fulfilment,  for  a  race  as 
for  an  individual,  must  proceed  through  the  will  of 
man,  to  which  God  has  given  independence  of  Him- 
self. Apart  from  this  there  cannot  be  wrought  glory, 
or  merit  of  any  character,  or  any  perfection  worthy 
of  the  name.  The  will  of  man,  by  affecting  coopera- 
tion, conditions  each  man's  progress;  the  collective 
wills  of  men  the  progress  of  any  race;  and  the  point 
to  which  a  man  or  a  race  has  advanced  conditions 
the  knowledge  which  can  be  imparted,  the  knowl- 
edge even  of  God,  which  is  revelation.^  A  child 
must  think  as  a  child;  to  press  upon  him  the  ideas 
of  a  man  would  be  to  crush  rather  than  to  expand. 

^  I  St.  Peter,  i,  10-12.  ^  Hebrews,  ii,  9,  10. 

^  Collate  with  this  the  words  of  Christ:  "Moses  for  the  hard- 
ness of  your  heart  suffered  you  to  put  away  your  wives."  St. 
Matthew,  xix,  8. 


102         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

St.  Paul  attests  forcibly  this  point  of  view.  In  his 
exposition  of  the  insufficiency  of  the  Law  to  the  needs 
of  his  day,  he  fully  recognizes  its  adequacy  and  pur- 
pose in  the  past.  It  filled  the  position  of  a  tutor 
over  men  still  in  the  childhood  of  progress,^  requiring 
obedience  literal  and  unquestioning,  such  as  befits 
childhood,  and  to  such  promising  reward.  But,  as 
development  progressed,  the  method  was  increasingly 
outp-rown.     Observance  of  the  letter  became  an  un- 

o 

bearable  yoke,^  as  the  discipline  of  childhood  is  to 
manhood;  and,  yet  more  important,  as  its  spiritual 
demands  became  clearer  to  advancing  reason,  the 
impossibility  of  fulfilling  them  was  demonstrated  by 
experience.^  This  experience,  showing  the  need  of  a 
deliverer,  prepared  men  to  accept  and  follow  Christ, 
Who  fulfilled  all  the  requirements  of  the  Law  upon 
universal  mankind.  Having  so  fulfilled.  He  super- 
seded it  by  His  own  teaching;  itself  not  a  destruction 
but  a  fulfilment,  to  which  is  added  a  promise  of  future 
continued  guidance  into  all  truth. ^ 

These  limitations  to  God's  action  seem  to  follow 
irresistibly  from  His  purpose  to  bring  many  sons  to  a 
glory  ^  asserted  in  the  New  Testament,  and  implied 
in  the  Old.  Man  is  to  be  made  higher  than  the 
angels,®  brought  to  a  greater  glory.  Wherein  ? 
The  angels  too  have  wills,  for  through  self-will  some 
fell.     They  are  liable  to  temptation,  for  they  fell. 

*  Galatians,  iii,  19,  to  iv,  7. 

^  Acts,  XV,  10.    Galatians,  v,  i. 
^  Romans,  vii,  7-24;  viii,  2-4. 

*  St.  John,  xiv,  26;  xvi,  12-15. 
^  Hebrews,  ii,  10. 

®  Ibid.y  ii,  5-16;  Psalm,  viii. 


INTERCOURSE  103 


But  man  is  made  lower  than  they,  in  whatsoever 
that  inferiority  consists,  in  order  that  through  —  not 
by  —  the  operation  of  his  will  God  might  exalt  him 
in  the  overcoming  of  difficulties  and  of  suffering, 
the  effect  of  which  in  developing  character  is  testified 
by  experience  as  well  as  by  the  Bible.  "To  him 
that  overcometh  I  will  give  to  sit  down  with  Me  in 
My  throne,  even  as  I  also  overcame,  and  sat  down 
with  My  Father  in  His  throne."  ^  This  is  the 
triumph  of  humanity;  its  perfection  in  the  Christ 
Who  overcame,  and  in  His  followers.  All  do  not 
overcome;  but  those  who  do  rise  to  a  nature  higher 
than  they  otherwise  could.  To  the  race,  and  to  God, 
the  loss  in  the  one  is  more  than  compensated  by  the 
gain  in  the  other.  The  work  is  God's;  the  result  is 
not  accomplished  by  man's  will,  but  by  God  through 
man's  will,  which  is  an  essential  condition,  not  the 
vital  factor.     The  one  is  the  soil,  the  other  the  seed. 

By  bearing  in  mind  the  varied  conditions  of  the 
successive  stages  in  the  race's  progress,  and  the  di- 
verse characters  of  the  writers  who  received  the 
Divine  messages,  —  the  correspondents  of  God,  — 
the  unity  of  the  picture  they  give  gains  in  impres- 
siveness.  The  drawings,  we  may  say,  are  many,  in 
that  many  hands  have  been  engaged  upon  them; 
but  the  consistency  of  the  Being  portrayed  continues 
throughout,  evidencing  that  the  Original  who  mani- 
fested Himself  to  their  consciousness  is  one  and  the 
same. 

Were  the  Bible  the  work  of  one  imaginative  man 

^  Revelation,  iii,  21.    Also,  ii,  7,  11,  17,  26;   iii,  5,  12;  xii,  ii; 
XV,  2;  xxi,  7.     St.  John,  xvi,  33. 


104         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

of  genius,  consistency  of  portrayal  would  not  be 
exceptional,  or  surprising;  that  it  is  found  as  the 
work  of  many  hands,  through  several  centuries,  is 
a  fair  indication  that  they  are  presenting  the  same 
Person,  even  the  one  God,  for  in  this  they  agree  as 
their  avowed  purpose.  As  there  is  no  difference 
between  Jew  and  Gentile,  but  the  same  God  over 
all  is  rich  unto  all  that  call  upon  Him;  ^  as  He  is  no 
respecter  of  persons,  but  in  every  nation  he  that 
feareth  Him  and  doeth  righteousness  is  accepted 
with  Him;^  so  there  is  no  distinction  of  period,  no 
differentiation  on  the  score  of  natural  gifts,  or  of 
position,  in  the  prevailing  features  of  the  revelation 
to  each.  It  is  one  throughout:  the  oneness  of  God; 
His  continuous  overruling  and  providence,  from 
creation  onward;  the  duty  of  obedience  to  Him, 
and  of  righteous  dealing  with  the  neighbor;  the  as- 
surance of  judgment,  the  assurance  of  forgiveness, 
all  receiving  precise  and  successive  development, 
broadening  their  scope  and  spiritualizing  observance. 
There  is  consideration  of  circumstances,  what  is 
styled  "  talking  down  "  towards  the  level  of  the  hearer, 
a  process  in  continual  practice  to-day  when  a  speaker, 
to  put  his  subject  in  clearer  light,  uses  what  we  call 
illustration ;  but  there  is  this  constant  characteristic : 
that  the  talk  is  always  above  the  level  of  the  contem- 
porary hearer;  not  out  of  his  reach,  but  elevated  and 
elevating. 

This  is  a  phase  of  that  which  Christ  described  as 
His  mission:    fulfilling  the  Law  and  the  Prophets; 
accepting  the  past  and  present,  as  so  much  gain,  but 
^  Romans,  x,  12.  ^  Acts,  x,  34,  35. 


INTERCOURSE  105 


leading  up  and  on  from  it.  In  several  instances  in 
the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  this  is  obvious,  on  the 
surface;  but  it  is  not  easy  instantly  to  recognize  the 
same  in  such  comment  as  that  on  "Thou  shalt  not 
forswear  thyself"  Here  Christ  apparently  annuls; 
but  when  it  is  considered  that  "Thou  shalt  not  for- 
swear thyself"  forbids  solemn  asseverations  lightly  * 
uttered  and  lightly  disregarded,  it  is  seen  that  to 
"swear  not  at  all"  is  advance  on  the  same  line;  ful- 
filment, not  destruction.  It  is  the  developing  spirit 
of  the  third  commandment  of  the  Decalogue.  So 
with  the  treatment  of  the  Sabbath.  The  command 
"to  rest"  receives  some  explanatory  comment  in  the 
second  giving  of  the  law:  "that  thy  man  servant 
and  maid  servant  may  rest  as  well  as  thou."  Christ's 
"It  is  lawful  to  do  good  on  the  Sabbath"  is  a  further 
fulfilment  of  the  purposes  of  physical  mercy  which 
underlie  the  fourth  commandment.  Suffering  re- 
lieved is  rest  given;  fulfilment,  not  destruction. 
Under  the  Christian  dispensation,  St.  Paul  antici- 
pates advance  in  knowledge,  as  did  Christ.  Let  us, 
as  many  as  are  full  grown,  be  thus  minded;  and  if 
in  anything  ye  (any  of  you)  be  otherwise  minded, 
this  also  shall  God  reveal  unto  you :  only,  whereunto 
we  have  attained,  by  that  same  rule  let  us  walk.^ 
These  things  manifest  the  continuity  of  the  advance, 
and  from  it  is  indicated  the  oneness  of  Him  Who 
speaks  throughout. 

It  will  be  said,  however,  that  this  graduated  ad- 
vance is  but  an  instance  of  the  general  history  of 

^  Exodus,  XX,  7.     Leviticus,  xix,  12.     Deuteronomy,  xxiii,  21. 
^  Philippians,  iii,  15,  16. 


io6         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

civilization;  a  slow  emergence  of  higher  ideals,  win- 
ning their  way,  stage  by  stage,  to  general  accept- 
ance, and  thence  to  incorporation  in  established  law 
and  custom.  The  Christian  reply  would  be  that 
evolution  under  the  Jewish  economy,  the  Law  and 
the  Prophets,  was  indeed  gradual,  in  that  respect 
sharing  the  characteristics  of  all  progress;  but  that 
it  was  throughout  on  a  higher  plane,  entertained 
higher  aims,  and  reached  a  higher  result.  For, 
not  only  are  Jewish  thoughts  of  God  purer  and 
more  elevated,  not  only  the  spiritual  and  moral 
ideals  more  excellent,  but  Jesus  Christ  Himself, 
in  the  singular  beauty  of  His  character,  drew  His 
human  nature  from  Judaism.  The  Law  and  the 
Prophets  are  fulfilled  not  only  by  Him,  but  in  Him; 
they  are  the  root  of  which  He  is  the  flower.  To  use 
His  own  words.  Wisdom  is  justified  of  her  children.* 
He  is  the  child.  He  the  result,  which  justifies  the 
antecedent  history. 

Since  the  coming  of  Christ,  advance,  when  durable, 
has  been  confined  as  a  fact  almost  wholly  to  Chris- 
tian civilization,  and  has  been  due  ultimately  to  the 
presence  and  influence  of  the  Christian  Church; 
therein  fulfilling  the  prophetic  word  of  its  Founder, 
that  it  should  be  the  salt,  preserving  that  which 
has  already  been  attained,  and  the  leaven  working 
continuously  to  further  results.^  The  Saracens  de- 
veloped an  order  of  civilization  which  ceased  to 
progress,  and  has  not  endured.  The  stationariness 
of  the  East  has  become  proverbial;  China  and  Japan 
gloried  in  conservatism  until  touched  by  Christianity. 

*  St.  Matthew,  xi,  19.  ^  St.  Matthew,  v,  13;  xiii,  ^3' 


INTERCOURSE  107 


The  Church  has  been  the  instrument  for  preserving 
the  knowledge  of  the  only  true  God  and  of  Jesus 
Christ,  which  is  the  life  of  the  Christian  man  and 
the  Christian  community.  Thus  inspired,  she  has 
upon  the  whole,  with  many  sins  and  shortcomings, 
sought  above  all  the  Kingdom  of  God  and  His 
Righteousness;  and  to  the  civilization  thus  conse- 
crated has  been  realized  the  promise  to  such  a  course, 
that  all  other  things  —  the  material  fruits  of  our 
civilization  —  would  be  added. ^  This  providential 
ordering  is  in  itself  as  clear  as  the  revealed  providen- 
tial guidance  and  development  told  in  the  Jewish 
Scriptures.  Reliance  upon  it  is  an  appeal  to  history; 
and  to  this  the  Church  adds  the  testimony  of  the 
individual  experience,  reproducing  in  miniature  the 
advance  of  Christendom  at  large  in  the  knowledge 
of  God,  in  the  observance  of  His  ways,  and  in  con- 
sequent benefit.    The  witness  of  two  is  true. 

The  appeal  to  history  involves  a  laborious  analysis, 
to  which  very  few  can  be  competent,  to  detect  and 
indicate  the  indispensable  influence  of  the  Church, 
and  of  its  Hfe,  upon  the  general  progress.  Many 
can  read;  but  not  all  can  separate  the  elements  in 
the  composite  result.  The  difficulty  rests  not  merely 
in  the  variety  of  motives  and  characters  recognizable 
in  Christian  history  in  general,  but  in  the  mixture 
of  good  and  bad  in  the  Church  itself,  and  in  the  com- 
manding individual  characters  of  Church  history. 
The  mingling  of  self-sacrifice  and  self-seeking,  often 
disguised  to  the  man  himself  as  the  interest  of  the 
Church,    and    therefore    of    God;    weakness     and 


^  St.  Matthew,  vi,  ^2- 


io8         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

strength,  wisdom  and  folly,  purity  of  purpose  and 
blindness  of  moral  perception,  meeting  not  only  in 
a  period,  but  in  the  same  man.  From  these  causes 
history  is  seen  in  a  blur;  conclusions  will  vary  and 
can  only  be  general.  The  question  in  fact  becomes 
one  of  testimony  to  character,  the  credit  due  on  the 
whole  to  the  Christian  Church,  whether  it  has  ful- 
filled the  prediction  of  its  Founder,  been  as  salt  and 
as  leaven. 

The  verdict  of  personal  experience  is  simpler  and 
surer;  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  experience 
implies  expertness,  —  an  expert.  That  is,  the  result 
can  be  reached  only  after  patient  continued  testing, 
analogous  to  the  experiments  of  Science  in  method, 
but  not  in  fundamental  spirit.  For  Science  demands 
Sight,  whereas  Christian  conviction  interprets  ex- 
periences by  Faith.  On  the  ground  of  the  Resur- 
rection of  Jesus  Christ,  the  conditions  imposed  by 
Him  are  accepted,  as  being  not  arbitrary,  but  truths 
asserted  to  us  as  of  His  knowledge;  with  them,  and 
in  His  spirit,  the  course  of  man  must  be  ordered, 
walking  by  faith,  not  by  sight.  Thus  doing,  the 
witness  of  the  Resurrection,  with  which  man  begins, 
becomes  in  time  the  witness  of  personal  certainty  — 
the  witness  in  himself.^  Such  result  cannot  be 
transferred  as  experience,  but  it  can  be  certified  to 
another;  and  when  this  has  been  done  by  many  the 
cumulative  force  is  very  great,  reinforcing  inde- 
pendently and  powerfully  the  testimony  from  history. 

Perpetual  uplifting  is  one  characteristic  of  the 
portrait.     The  God  of  to-day  is  always  the  God  of 

*  Romans,  viii,  i6.    Galatians,  iv,  6.    i  St.  John,  v,  lo. 


INTERCOURSE  109 


yesterday;  and  in  nothing  more  than  that,  as  the 
understanding  of  the  follower  increases,  he  finds 
Him  ever  rising  above  him,  drawing  him  upwards. 
Always,  as  Moses  said,  and  St.  Paul  quoted,  "The 
commandment  is  not  far  off.  It  is  not  in  heaven, 
that  thou  shouldest  say  who  shall  go  up  for  us  into 
heaven  and  bring  it  to  us.  Neither  is  it  beyond  the 
sea;  .  .  .  but  the  word  is  very  nigh  unto  thee,  in  thy 
mouth,  and  in  thy  heart,  that  thou  mayest  do  it.''  ^ 
Walk  by  the  rule  thou  hast  and  thou  shalt  ascend 
continuously,  —  shalt  attain;  for  there  is  in  Moses 
the  promise  also  of  the  future,  the  upward  move- 
ment, to  be  fulfilled  in  the  Prophet  who  should  be 
raised  up  like  unto  him,^  —  fulfilled  in  Christ,  but 
partly  and  continuously  realized  in  His  predecessors.^ 
There  is,  of  course,  the  current  objection  that  the 
God  revealed  to  Israel  differs  not  in  degree  but  in 
kind  from  the  God  revealed  by  and  in  Jesus  Christ. 
The  One,  it  is  said,  is  a  tribal  God,  the  God  of  a 
single  small  people;  a  God  of  vengeance,  a  jealous 
God;  a  God  who  is  described  as  angry,  as  avenging 
Himself,  as  repenting  of  His  purposes,  as  admin- 
istering rude  justice,  or  worse  injustice,  in  primitive 
fashion.  This  is  not  the  view  of  Christ  Himself, 
or  of  Christianity.  To  Christ,  the  Revealer,  the 
Law  and  the  Prophets  are  a  series  consecutive  with 
Himself  and  issuing  in  Him.^ 

^  Deuteronomy,  xxx,  11-14.    Romans,  x,  6-8. 

^  Deuteronomy,  xviii,  15.  St.  Matthew,  xi,  3.  St.  John,  i,  21. 
Acts,  iii,  19-23;  vii,  ^J. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xi,  12-14;  vii,  12.  St.  Luke,  xvi,  16.  i  St.  Peter, 
i,  10-12. 

*  St.  Matthew,  V,  17-20;    xiii,  16,  17;    xxii,  35-40.     St.  Mark, 


no         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

On  this  point  the  New  Testament  itself  has  no 
doubts;  but  as  a  proposition  to  be  weighed  to-day 
rationally,  —  by  the  human  mind,  —  there  are  two 
leading  considerations.  The  portrait  of  God  de- 
picted for  us  in  the  Old  Testament  must  be  looked 
upon  as  a  whole,  —  the  ensemble,  to  use  a  French 
idiom,  —  not  merely  one  feature  at  a  time;  per- 
haps it  should  rather  be  said,  the  effect  of  all  the 
portraits  by  the  several  portrayers  must  be  allowed 
to  present  their  ultimate  joint  result.  It  will  be 
found,  I  think,  that  no  serious  discordance  in  any 
part  will  be  felt  by  one  familiar  with  the  whole; 
and,  secondly,  it  will  be  admitted  that  certain  con- 
spicuous traits  appear  through  all,  while  contradic- 
tions are  only  apparent.  The  tribal  God  is  tribal 
merely  in  the  sense  that  He  has  chosen  Israel  for 
His  own  possession,  for  especial  purposes;  as  each 
individual  man  is  fore-ordained  for  a  specific  work. 
He  is  throughout  the  supreme  "One"  over  all  other 
gods;  and  His  choice  of  Israel  is  from  the  first  ^  as 
a  means,  by  which,  and  in  which,  all  nations  ulti- 
mately shall  be  blessed,  —  shall  be  made  His. 
I  speak,  of  course,  of  the  words  of  the  Bible  itself; 
not  of  the  meaning  attributed  to  them  by  the  Israel- 
ites of  the  day  of  their  utterance. 

The  anger  and  the  vengeance  of  God,  too,  are  not 
rejected  in  the  words  of  the  revelation  of  the  New 
Testament.     That  Jesus  Christ  as  Man,  and  as  the 

xii,  28-34.    St.  Luke,  x,  25-28;  xxiv,  27,  32,  44-47.      St.   John, 
V,  39,  46,  47.     Acts,  xiii,  27-29.     Galatians,  iii,  23-25. 

^  Genesis,  xii,  3.  So  Moses  at  a  later  but  still  very  primitive 
day  addresses  Jehovah  as  the  God  of  the  spirits  of  all  flesh.  Num- 
bers, xvi,  22;  xxvii,  16. 


INTERCOURSE  iii 


Son  of  Man,  refused  to  call  down  fire  from  heaven 
upon  those  who  repelled  Him  ^  does  not  prevent 
His  placing  in  His  own  mouth  the  words,  "Depart 
from  Me,  ye  cursed,  into  the  eternal  fire."  ^  The 
words  are  words  of  wrath,  —  not  of  hatred,  —  the 
act  an  act  of  vengeance,  as  wrath  and  vengeance  are 
commonly  understood;  and  if  we  have  learned  to 
believe  that  as  done  by  God  they  can  be  called 
wrath  and  vengeance  only  relatively  to  man,  that  they 
are  not  exact  expressions  of  God's  Being  and  con- 
duct, but  illustrations,  convenient  to  man's  under- 
standing and  speech,  why  deny  to  the  Old  Testament 
that  which  we  have  to  concede  to  the  New  ? 

The  ensemble  of  Christ's  character,  in  word  and 
in  act,  triumphantly  vindicates  from  inconsistency 
these  words  and  this  deed.  The  perfectness  of 
His  self-sacrifice,  from  birth  to  death,  justify  from 
all  taint  of  self  His  words  of  wrath.  His  act  of  judg- 
ment. Incidentally,  indeed.  He  places  before  us 
the  explanation,^  that  failure  in  love  towards  men 
is  the  failure  of  life,  is  spiritual  death;  but  the  per- 
fectness of  His  teaching  and  life  carry  their  own 
assurance  here,  and  even  in  instances  where  we 
may  be  perplexed,  as  in  the  imprecation  on  the  fig- 
tree.^  It  has  been  reasonably  said,  "When  a  man 
speaks  truth  as  far  as  I  can  test  him,  I  believe  his 
words  when  they  pass  beyond  my  understanding." 
So  the  ensemble  of  the  Character  revealed  in  the 
Old  Testament  justifies  to  reason  commands  and 
acts,  which  to  us  may  be  hard  to  understand  just 

^  St.  Luke,  ix,  54,  55.  ^  St.  Matthew,  xxv,  41. 

3  Ibid.,  44,  45.  4  Ibid.,  xxi,  18-22. 


112         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

because  of  our  difference  of  environment,  and  of 
thought,  acquired  in  the  progress  of  revelation. 

Again,  the  jealousy  attributed  to  God  in  the  Deca- 
logue does  not  differ  from  the  words  of  Christ:  He 
that  loveth  father  or  mother,  son  or  daughter,  more 
than  Me  is  not  worthy  of  Me/  Whoso  forsaketh 
not  all  that  he  hath,  he  cannot  be  My  disciple.^ 
This  is  not  a  captious  demand  for  personal  consid- 
eration. It  is  the  statement  of  a  condition,  of  a 
principle,  universally  recognized  but  here  of  most 
vital  application,  —  the  necessity  of  concentration 
of  effort  to  success,  of  what  Christ  elsewhere  calls 
"the  single  eye,"  and  Napoleon,  "exclusiveness  of 
purpose."  Purpose  is  the  exact  word  needed  for 
this  definition.  As  life  often  shows,  there  may  be 
many  necessary  activities,  jostling  and  even  imped- 
ing one  another;  but  amid  and  above  all  can  be 
the  one  dominating  will  to  make  each  an  item  of 
service  to  God,  excluding  all  other  motives  from 
rivalry  with  this.  Thus  St.  Paul  writes:  Whatso- 
ever ye  do,  in  word  or  deed,  —  or  thought, —  do  all 
in  the  Name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  giving  thanks.^ 
The  commonest  necessities  may  contribute  to  build 
up  this  controlling  singleness  of  mind.  "Whether 
ye  eat,  or  drink,  or  whatsoever  ye  do,  do  all  to  the 
glory  of  God."  ^  Diversities  of  ministrations,  but 
one  Master.^ 

Nowhere  can  this  exclusiveness  be  more  necessary 
than  in  the  chiefest  of  concerns,  religion;  and  at 
no  time  more  essential  than  at  the  issuance  of  the 

*  St.  Matthew,  X,  37,  38.  ^  St.  Luke,  xiv,  26-33. 

^  Colossians,  iii,  17.      *  i  Corinthians,  x,  31.     ^  Ibid.,  xii,  5. 


INTERCOURSE  113 


Decalogue,  when  the  worship  of  Jehovah  only,  in 
face  of  general  polytheism,  was  a  necessary  first 
step  to  the  recognition  by  Israel  that  there  was  no 
other  than  He,  and  thence  to  the  admission  of  that 
truth  by  others  than  Israel.  These  are  but  other 
forms  of  the  pronouncement  which  beyond  all  other 
binds  together  the  Old  and  the  New,  the  word  alike 
of  Moses  and  of  Christ:  The  Lord  our  God  is  One, 
and  thou  shalt  love  Him  with  all  thy  powers.  There 
is  to  Him  no  rival;  for  the  commandment.  Thou 
shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself,  is  second  only. 
There  is  no  commandment  greater  than  these. ^ 
They  summarize  the  revealed  character  of  God, 
and  taken  together  constitute  the  unity  of  the  Revela- 
tion in  the  two  Testaments. 

The  severity  and  the  jealousy  of  the  God  of  the 
Exodus  is  thus  manifested  also  in  Jesus  Christ,  and 
repeatedly  affirmed  by  His  immediate  followers, 
the  Twelve  and  St.  Paul.  Equally  the  tenderness 
of  Christ  is  taught  of  Jehovah  in  many  passages  of 
the  Old  Testament,  specifically  and  notably  in  the 
Exodus,  in  immediate  connection  with  the  giving 
of  the  Law,  the  stern  school-master,  at  Sinai.  This 
is  the  moment  chosen  for  the  gracious  announcement 
of  the  character  of  the  God  of  Israel :  Jehovah,  Je- 
hovah, a  God  merciful  and  gracious,  slow  to  anger, 
and  abundant  in  lovlngkindness  and  truth;  keep- 
ing lovingkindness  for  thousands,  forgiving  iniquity 
and  sin,  and  that  will  by  no  means  clear  the  guilty.^ 
Note  the  conjunction  —  and,  not  but.     There  is  in 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxii,  34-40.  St.  Mark,  xii,  28-31.  St.  Luke,  x, 
25-28.     Deuteronomy,  vi,  4.  ^  Exodus,  xxxiv,  5-7. 

8 


114         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

these  opposed  declarations  no  opposition  of  quali- 
ties, no  dissonance.  The  Being  of  God,  which  is 
His  character,  is  a  perfect  harmony.  It  is  the  dis- 
cord of  man  that  induces  the  appearance  of  an  op- 
position which  is  not  internal  to  the  Godhead,  but 
external  to  it,  and  in  effect.  It  is  the  same  God 
throughout,  alike  in  Sinai  and  in  the  Crucifixion. 
It  is  also  the  same  Man,  in  different  stages  of  de- 
velopment; and  to  him  God  speaks  in  like  tones, 
but  with  application  wider  and  deeper  as  genera- 
tions pass.  Only  so  can  Man  have  intercourse  with 
God ;  so  only  can  any  creature  know  the  Creator,  — 
in  terms  of  its  own  Hmited  being.  There  may  be 
endless  increase;  we  have  eternity  before  us;  the 
knowledge  then  compared  to  the  knowledge  now  * 
will  be  immeasurable;  but  then  as  now,  and  as  in 
Abraham's  day,  it  will  be  knowledge  only  of  the 
time  reached  and  of  the  progress  made. 

As  regards  the  methods  prescribed  for  early  Jewish 
justice,  and  in  the  commands  such  as  that  to  ex- 
tirpate the  nations  of  Canaan,  it  may  be  admitted 
that  these  are  not  consonant  to  the  methods  of 
Christianity;  it  does  not  follow  that  they  are  in- 
consistent with  the  underlying  Spirit  which  consti- 
tutes the  unity  of  the  two  Testaments.  To  illustrate, 
they  are  to  be  regarded  exactly  as  the  amputation 
of  a  Hmb  to  save  a  Hfe,  or  the  sacrificing  the  child 
to  save  the  mother  from  whom  it  is  being  born, 
as  necessary  means  to  an  end.  In  the  created  uni- 
verse human  life  is  the  greatest  thing  known  to  us, 
and  of  the  most  price.  Nevertheless,  human  Hfe 
*  I  Corinthians,  xiii,  12. 


INTERCOURSE  115 


is  not  the  most  valuable  thing  in  the  world.  We 
must  accept  the  paradox;  that  we  do,  is  formulated 
in  the  proverb,  Death  rather  than  dishonor.  The 
frequent  abuse  of  the  expression  does  not  invalidate 
its  truth.  The  right  to  live  is  not  absolute,  but 
conditional.  Where  a  life  contravenes  the  ends  at 
stake,  the  life  must  be  taken  away.  Life  does  not 
begin  and  end  in  itself,  or  for  itself.  It  is  itself  a 
means,  not  an  end.  When  it  ceases  to  forward  the 
end  for  which  it  exists,  it  forfeits  its  right  to  continue ; 
when  it  contravenes  that  end  its  destruction  is  per- 
missible, and  may  be  imperative. 

Here  it  is  not  a  good  end  that  justifies  an  evil 
means.  The  means  are  right;  because  life  is  not 
so  sacrosanct  that  it  should  not  be  forfeited  for  cause, 
as  must  be  every  means  which  does  not  fulfil  its  end. 
"Cut  it  down,  why  cumbereth  it  the  ground.?"^ 
The  fig-tree  of  this  parable  had  life,  the  end  of  which 
was  the  bearing  of  figs;  it  bore  no  figs;  the  end 
not  being  accomplished,  the  means,  the  tree's  life, 
was  worthless.  Man's  judgment  of  such  a  condi- 
tion in  human  life  is  liable  to  error;  yet  most  admit 
that  in  certain  cases  it  is  right  to  take  away  life,  or 
all  that  makes  life  desirable;  that  these  are  proper 
means  to  protect  society  from  a  life  which  contra- 
dicts its  purpose.  We  reasonably  limit  such  forfei- 
ture to  distinct  acts,  clearly  proved;  so  admitting 
that  only  in  marked  and  clear  instances  is  man's 
judgment  adequate  to  decide  this  issue.  This 
inadequacy  is  the  basis  of  refusal  to  take  away  life, 
where  it  seemingly  merely  protracts  hopeless  sufFer- 
^  St.  Luke,  xiii,  6-9. 


Ii6         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

ing.  Man  cannot  know  the  hopelessness,  either 
physical  or  spiritual;-  nor  estimate  the  value  of  the 
life  to  the  spiritual  welfare  of  the  sufferer  or  to 
others.  But  on  any  supposition  of  a  God,  He  does 
know  and  rightly  may  act.  He  may  take  away 
the  righteous  from  evil  to  come;  ^  man  may  not. 
He  is  acting  continually.  Every  death  is  His  sum- 
mons. His  verdict,  that  the  life  has  failed  defini- 
tively; or  has  fulfilled  its  end  here,  and  is  ready  for 
transplanting  there. 

These  conclusions  are  humanly  commonplaces, 
and  in  nothing  contrary  to  Christianity.  Having  in 
mind  the  presuppositions  of  the  existence  of  God, 
and  of  His  purposes,  with  the  other  circumstances 
of  the  Old  Testament,  the  current  attitude  towards 
its  severities  reflects  a  present  conventional  softness 
of  outlook,  extended  impartially  towards  our  own 
faults  and  towards  the  punishment  of  the  worst  of 
offences,  —  if  we  ourselves  have  not  suffered  by  them. 
This  is  not  only  different  from  the  spirit  of  Christ, 
but  opposed  to  it.  "The  Son  of  Man  shall  put  away 
out  of  His  Kingdom  all  things  that  offend,  or  do 
iniquity";^  a  fate  worse  than  death,  as  indicated  by 
the  words  immediately  following,  however  symboli- 
cal: "and  shall  cast  them  into  the  furnace  of  fire; 
there  shall  be  waihng  and  gnashing  of  teeth." 

Apply  these  considerations  to  the  nationsof  Canaan. 
The  repeated  Old  Testament  command  concerning 
them,  now  assumed  to  be  contrary  to  the  spirit  of  a 
merciful  God,  is  summed  up  in  the  words:  "Thou 
shalt  smite  them,  and  utterly  destroy  them;  thou 
^  Isaiah,  Ivii,  i.  ^  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  41,  42. 


INTERCOURSE  117 


shalt  make  no  covenant  with  them,  nor  show  mercy 
unto  them ; "  "  thine  eye  shall  have  no  pity  on 
them."  ^  This  is  the  sentence,  the  mandate  of  the 
Judge  to  the  executioner;  and  it  is  accompanied  by 
the  justification,  the  finding,  let  us  say,  of  the  jury. 
"Not  for  the  righteousness  of  Israel,  but  for  the 
wickedness  of  these  nations,  in  various  specified 
charges,^  doth  Jehovah  thy  God  drive  them  out  from 
before  thee."  ^  Coupled  with  the  command  is  its 
purpose,  equally  repeated :  to  preserve  the  separate- 
ness  of  Israel  by  isolation,  that  the  worship  of  the 
true  God  may  not  perish  from  the  race.  "Neither 
shalt  thou  serve  their  gods,  nor  make  marriages 
with  them;  for  they  will  turn  away  thy  children 
from  following  Me.  Thou  shalt  utterly  destroy 
them,  that  they  teach  you  not  to  do  after  all  their 
abominations,  which  they  have  done  unto  their  gods; 
for  so  would  ye  sin  against  Jehovah,  your  God."  * 

In  short,  the  Old  Testament  presents  to  us  a 
community,  not  yet  a  nation,  and  in  childhood;  sur- 
rounded by  moral  dangers,  and  still  in  an  immatu- 
rity like  that  of  opening  manhood,  with  its  familiar 
perils.  It  has  behind  it  scarcely  a  tradition,  beyond 
that  of  its  origin,  save  the  superimposed  weakness 
of  centuries  of  bondage.  It  is  brought  into  contact 
with  peoples  more  numerous,  more  highly  organized, 
and  possessing  a  more  developed  civilization;  cor- 
rupt, but  extremely  attractive  to  a  nomad  pastoral 
race  such   as  the  Israelites  were.     The  essence  of 

^  Deuteronomy,  vii,  2-4,  16. 

"  Leviticus,  xviii,  24-30.    Deuteronomy,  xii,  31;   xviii,  9-14. 

^  Deuteronomy,  ix,  4,  5.  *  Ihid.,  vii,  3,  16;   xx,  17,  18. 


Ii8         THE   LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

the  corruption  is  in  the  rehgious  system  and  its 
practices;  to  which  stand  opposed  the  revelation 
but  recently  committed  to  Israel  of  the  Oneness  of 
God,  and  a  moral  code  distinctly  in  advance  — 
though  not  beyond  reach  —  of  that  which  the  Jews 
had  hitherto  accepted.  The  purpose  —  by  the 
Record  —  is  to  establish  them  in  this  land,  central 
to  the  civilizations  then  existent,  the  highway  be- 
tween Babylonia,  Syria,  and  Egypt,  on  the  borders 
of  the  sea  frequented  by  the  most  adventurous  sea- 
men and  hardiest  commercial  pioneers  known  to 
antiquity,  between  the  capitals  to  be  founded  in  a 
still  distant  future  by  Alexander  and  Constantine; 
to  establish  them,  and  to  preserve  their  racial  faith 
and  character  from  submersion  by  the  conditions 
they  found  there  prevailing.  The  enemy  is  more 
numerous,  mightier,  as  well  as  more  highly  civilized. 
Granting  a  conquest,  will  not  the  vanquished  absorb 
their  conquerors,  intruding  upon  them  their  polity, 
their  religion,  their  civilization  in  all  its  aspects  .?  We 
know  how  the  Roman  Empire  affected  the  Teutonic 
invaders;  how,  on  the  other  hand,  the  English, 
having  driven  out  the  Britons,  established  their  own 
system,  which  in  turn  swallowed  up  the  Norman 
invader.  To  this  day  Great  Britain  remains  English, 
as  the  Jew  remained  the  Jew,  and  brought  forth  the 
Christ.  Could  it  have  been  so  had  they  become 
Canaanite  in  essentials,  in  foundation  .? 

Conditions  like  those  of  Canaan  are  not  confined 
to  the  ancient  world.  Will  any  one  seriously  contend 
that  the  North  American  continent  should  have  been 
left  forever  in   the    hands   of  tribes  whose  sole  use 


INTERCOURSE  119 


of  their  territory  was  to  contravene  the  purposes  of 
human  life  ?  The  question  addresses  itself  only  to 
the  general  proposition.  It  does  not  suggest  the 
propriety  of  particular  acts  of  the  whites,  even  judged 
by  the  standard  of  their  day;  though  it  must  be  re- 
called that  John  Fiske,  a  competent  authority,  says 
that  Penn's  justly  lauded  method  of  purchase  was 
the  rule,  not  the  exception/  Again,  will  any  one 
maintain  that,  as  a  matter  of  human  justice,  it  was 
wrong  for  the  English  colonists  to  dispossess  the 
French  government  of  territory  which  kept  their 
borders  in  perpetual  horror  and  bloodshed  ?  Does 
it  strike  any  believer  in  a  Providence  as  iniquitous 
that  God  should  remove  by  violence  an  absolutism 
which  paralyzed  human  development  at  its  sources, 
and  should  replace  it  with  a  government  that  freed 
human  energies  to  their  lawful  ends  ?  Is  not  light 
shed  upon  that  past,  as  Christ's  coming  sheds  light 
upon  Judaism,  as  we  note  in  the  present  that  the 
territory  redeemed  from  the  Red  Indian  and  from 
Bourbon  despotism  is  being  made  a  haven  for  the 
needy  and  oppressed  of  all  races,  and  that  the  tradi- 
tions of  liberty,  law,  free  institutions,  have  thus 
become  the  possession  of  many  kindreds  to  whom 
they  were  unknown  in  their  former  homes  ? 

The  parallelism,  in  order  of  consequences,  between 
the  occupation  of  Canaan  by  the  Israelites  and  the 
occupation  of  America  by  the  English  race,  is  so 
close,  that  an  American  of  to-day,  guarding  himself 
from  ignoring  his  country's  shortcomings,  may  rever- 

^  Dutch  and  Quaker  Colonies,  ii,  160-162. 


120         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

ently  trace  the  comparison,  and  see  in  both  the  finger 
of  God;  revelation  shedding  Hght  on  history  called 
secular.  Canaan  was  occupied  by  the  Jews,  who 
brought  thereto,  besides  their  national  character,  a 
religious  creed  of  the  highest  order  for  that  day :  a 
tradition  of  the  unity  of  God,  and  a  cede  of  morals, 
formulated  into  observances,  built  up  on  that  founda- 
tion of  allegiance  to  one  God;  further,  a  hope  for 
the  future,  to  be  realized  in  a  Messiah.  When  estab- 
lished in  the  land  they  possessed  a  political  organiza- 
tion, extremely  simple,  theocratic  in  form,  the  cohesive 
features  of  which  were  the  national  faith,  pregnant  of 
the  future  of  Judaism  and  of  Christianity,  and  the 
policy  of  isolation  necessary  to  its  preservation  and 
purity.  This  exclusion  of  foreign  admixture  during 
the  youth  and  immaturity  of  the  people,  though  not 
fully  enforced  by  themselves,  intensified  the  tradi- 
tions of  which  they  were  the  sole  possessors;  breed- 
ing, it  is  true,  a  spirit  of  caste,  which  with  all  its 
exaggerations  has  the  tough  merit  of  endurance,  and 
is  not  without  its  analogue  in  every  virile  nation. 
Then,  when  the  fullness  of  time  was  come,  the  promise 
made  unto  the  fathers,  never  wholly  forgotten,  cher- 
ished always  as  a  living  hope,  God  fulfilled  unto  the 
children  when  He  raised  up  the  Messiah.^  With 
this  fulfilment  of  its  object  isolation  ceased.  Judaism 
had  accomplished  its  mission  of  safeguarding  truth 
until  it  was  strong  enough  to  bear  the  inrush  of  the 
peoples,  without  weakening  by  the  dilution.  The 
salt  had  kept  its  saltness.^    The  tree  was  justified  by 

^  Acts,  ii,  22-32;  111,22-26;    xiii,  32-39;  xxvi,  6-8. 

*  St.  Matthew,  V,  13;    St.  Mark,  Ix,  50;    St.  Luke,  xiv,  34. 


INTERCOURSE  12 1 


its  fruit/  and  was  ready  to  spread  beyond  the  narrow 
bounds  of  Palestine  and  to  cover  the  earth. 

Turn  to  America.  By  successive  events  in  history, 
—  which  to  the  Christian  is  the  overruHng  of  human 
action  by  Divine  Providence,  —  the  territory  known 
as  the  thirteen  colonies,  and  subsequently  that  of 
Canada,  became  committed  to  English  hands. 
These  brought  the  strong  traditions  of  liberty  and 
law,  set  over  against  each  other,  in  counterpoise, 
energizing  through  representative  government,  al- 
ready mature,  though  not  yet  fully  developed.  In 
due  transition  this  political  heritage,  endowed  now 
with  the  power  of  an  accepted  creed,  passed  to  the 
United  States;  and  coincident  therewith  arose  in 
Europe  conditions  which  not  only  diverted  further 
European  strife  but  imposed  upon  America  a  formal 
policy  of  political  isolation.  To  this  influence  dis- 
tance contributed,  as  did  a  need  of  men  in  Europe; 
first  to  fulfil  the  demands  of  protracted  war,  and 
subsequently  to  repair  its  ravages.  In  a  population  so 
engrossed,  emigration  on  a  large  scale  lacked  motive. 
The  American  people  grew  up  separate,  like  the  Jews, 
a  people  that  dwelt  alone,  not  reckoned  among  the 
nations;  buiFeted  recklessly  on  the  one  cheek  and 
on  the  other  by  the  European  belligerents;  a  factor 
in  their  game,  but  without  their  respect.  "Who 
reads  an  American  book  .?"  Immigration  in  quantity 
had  not  begun.  The  tradition  received  from  the 
fathers  was  intensified  by  in-breeding.  Still  a  third 
of  a  century  passed,  in  which  the  presence  of  an 

^  St.  Matthew,  vii,   16-20;  xii,  33.     St.  John,  x,  25,  -J^J,  38; 
XV,  24. 


122         THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

ominous  internal  question  fixed  upon  itself  national 
attention,  in  an  effort  to  retain  the  territory  it  had 
received,  and  to  preserve  unimpaired  the  tradition  of 
a  national  unity.  That  accomplished,  there  swelled 
mightily  the  influx  of  alien  elements,  like  the  Gentile 
into  the  Jewish  Christian  Church.  Reverence  dare 
not  parallel  any  merely  human  incident  to  the  com- 
ing of  Him  in  Whom  all  true  Jewish  tradition  was  ful- 
filled ;  but  in  the  one  sequence  as  in  the  other  we  may 
trace  development,  and  note  a  "fullness  of  time.''  ^ 

The  lesson  gains  in  impressiveness  if  we  work  back 
to  its  antecedents,  to  English  history.  The  sum- 
mary may  be  brief,  for  the  continuous  analogy  is 
obvious.  From  an  early  continental  home,  among 
many  kindred  peoples,  came  the  tribes  of  the  Angles 
and  the  Saxons,  bearing  with  them  the  seeds  of  Eng- 
lish political  faith,  formulated  in  rude  custom. 
They  thrust  out  the  Britons  from  Britain,  and  called 
the  land  by  their  own  name.  Canaan  became  Judaea. 
Insular  position  and  the  preoccupations  of  the  con- 
tinent favored  separateness.  The  Norman  conquest, 
for  the  same  reasons,  was  but  an  incident;  influential 
extremely,  but  appropriated,  assimilated,  and  ab- 
sorbed. Shakespeare's  "silver  sea"  maintained 
isolation,  and  with  it  insularity  and  narrowness; 
but  insularity  and  narrowness  intensified  race  char- 
acter, preserved  race  institutions,  and  deepened 
political  conviction.  To  such  matured  conditions 
of  faith  and  polity  came  the  fullness  of  time,  in  the 
days  of  Elizabeth  and  the  early  Stuarts ;  colonization 
began.    As  later  to  the  Americans,  there  supervened 

^  Galatians,  iv,  4.   St.  John,  vii,  6,  8. 


INTERCOURSE  123 


a  period  of  constitutional  struggle,  concentrating 
national  energies  upon  national  ideals.  Invigorated 
by  the  strife,  (which  again  was  but  ^n  incident,  of 
progress,  not  of  arrest),  the  people  arose,  like  a  giant 
refreshed  with  wine,  and  poured  forth  into  all  the 
world.  America,  Canada,  Australia,  New  Zealand, 
with  the  mother  country,  are  not  only  the  consecu- 
tive but  the  consistent  development  of  a  small  people, 
called  out  of  their  country,  possessing  a  new  land, 
driving  out  the  inhabitants,  maintained  there  in 
separateness,  intensified  in  political  faith,  and  then 
launched  upon  the  world ;  not,  let  us  hope,  to  conquer, 
but  to  convert.  First  in  the  isolation  of  England  by 
insularity,  and  then  in  the  isolation  of  her  offspring 
by  remoteness,  God  nurtured  a  peculiar  tradition  of 
liberty  and  law,  differing  in  forms  but  identical  in 
spirit,  to  become  in  the  end  a  common  heritage  of 
mankind. 

The  conquest  of  Canaan  was  humanly  probable. 
A  corrupt  civilization  becomes  effeminate,  and  is  apt 
to  go  down  before  a  simpler  foe.  But  how  should 
the  conquest  be  regulated,  to  serve  the  purposes  of 
a  foreseeing  God  .?  a  God  in  whose  hands  were  the 
issues  of  life,  as  they  are  now;  Who  can  determine 
justly.  The  command  given  is  expulsion,  by  death 
if  necessary.  A  Hne  is  drawn  between  the  treatment 
of  nations  who  surround  the  Israelite  territory  and 
those  who  dwell  in  it.^  An  external  danger,  though 
near,  bears  no  such  peril  as  does  one  which  permeates 
the  structure  of  social  and  political  life.  If  a  physical 
constitution  be  sound,  it  may  move  unimpaired  amid 
*  Deuteronomy,  xx,  10-18. 


124         THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

influences  threatening  health.  The  soundness  of 
Israel's  political  condition  depended  upon  maintain- 
ing the  exclusive  worship  of  the  one  God,  which 
could  not  be  accomplished  if  the  native  inhabitants 
remained,  in  the  intimacy  of  social  relations  that 
would  ensue,  with  their  demoralizing  worships  ap- 
peahng  to  the  fervid  passions  of  a  vigorous  primi- 
tive people.^  Clear  command  was  given  to  eradicate, 
not  only  men,  but  women,  whose  profound  influence 
upon  men,  in  social  and  religious  life,  is  here  recog- 
nized; as  to  us  ourselves  it  is  clearly  phrased  in 
cynical  proverb. 

The  object  is  the  preservation  of  a  nation  for  a 
great  specific  purpose,  the  maintenance  and  ultimate 
diffusion  of  the  knowledge  of  the  one  God,  con- 
cerning which  Jesus  Christ  says,  "To  know  the  only 
true  God  is  life  eternal."  ^  The  means  is  separate- 
ness,  in  order  to  assure  internal  purity  of  race,  custom, 
and  worship,  for  the  time  essential  to  the  object. 
The  method  is  extirpation  of  internal  evil  influences. 
In  no  one  of  these  ideas  is  there  aught  alien  to  the 
spirit  of  Christ;  ^  but  the  particular  conjuncture  de- 
manded a  particular  treatment  which  is  opposite  to 
His  own  action  and  words  in  the  conjuncture  which 
He  faced;  and  from  His  course  we  have  deduced  a 
softness  of  view  which  has  little  in  common  with 
Him,  and  which  loses  sight  of  principle  as  qualify- 
ing conduct.     To  a  common  type  of  intellect  the 

^  Exodus,  xxiii,  31-33;  xxxiv,  12-17. 
^  St.  John,  xvii,  3. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  37-42,  49,  50;  vii,  23;  xxv,  41.  2  Corin- 
thians, vi,  14-18;  vii,  I. 


INTERCOURSE  125 


pardon  of  a  particular  sinner  means  that  the  sin  is 
in  essence  venial.  The  justification  of  the  methods 
prescribed  is,  precisely,  that  it  is  the  command  of 
God,  in  Whose  hands  are  the  issues  of  life,  and  Who 
is  continually  issuing  His  sentences  of  death,  to-day 
as  then.  We  are  often  now  perplexed  by  the  removal 
of  particular  persons,  and  we  need  not  pretend  fully 
to  comprehend  in  the  case  of  the  Canaanites;  but  it 
can  be  seen  that,  if  the  charges  of  the  Bible  against 
them  be  accepted,  their  lives  were  justly  forfeit,  for 
they  had  become  irredeemably  means  to  evil  and  not 
to  good. 

There  is  in  this  nothing  contrary  to  the  spirit  of 
Christ;  no  divergence  between  the  temper  of  the 
Old  and  the  New  Testament.  As  Man,  Christ 
absolutely  refrains  from  retaliation,  and  even  from 
resentment,  for  personal  injury  or  insult,  and  lays 
upon  His  followers  unqualified  command  to  the 
same  effect.^  ** Father,  forgive,"^  sums  up  His  life, 
as  it  does  His  mission  of  redemption;  but  He  neither 
condones  obstinate  evil,  nor  forbids  official  punish- 
ment. This,  indeed,  He  tells  us,  He  as  Man, —  acting 
officially,  as  we  say,  —  will  inflict  upon  incurable 
impenitents,^  which  the  Canaanites  were.  The  com- 
mand to  destroy  is,  on  God's  part,  the  sentence  of 
a  judge,  not  an  expression  of  hatred;  the  Israelites 
in  complying  are  not  the  ministers  of  vengeance 
but  of  justice,  as  strictly  as  an  executioner  of  to- 
day in  carrying  out  a  sentence.  Granting  the  com- 
mand —  without  which  there  is  no  Old  Testament 

^  St.  Matthew,  v,  38-48;  xviii,  21-35. 

^  St.  Luke,  xxiii,  34.  ^  St.  Matthew,  xxv,  31-46. 


126         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

to  talk  about  —  their  action  is   purely  official  and 
ministerial. 

This  brings  up,  of  course,  the  question  of  con- 
science. Can  such  a  command,  coming  through  a 
man,  like  Moses,  or  received  by  the  operation  of 
one's  own  conviction,  as  from  God,  be  obeyed 
righteously .?  Should  it  not  rather  be  rejected,  as 
carrying  its  own  disproof  of  its  coming  from  God  ? 
One  reply  is  clear:  If  the  authority  be  adequate, 
obedience  is  justified,  nay,  imperative.  This  does 
not  assert  that  the  action  is  right  in  itself;  but  that 
obedience  to  conscience  involves  no  moral  wrong, 
on  the  contrary  is  morally  right.  A  man  may  do, 
or  may  suffer,  nobly  for  conscience'  sake,  and  yet 
be  mistaken  in  his  conviction.  He  is  responsible 
for  the  care  taken  to  insure  his  conclusions;  but, 
granting  that,  his  only  moral  responsibility  is  to  act 
accordingly.  Part  of  his  data  is  the  light  of  the 
age  in  which  he  lives.  It  may  be  true,  as  has  been 
asserted,  that  an  action  wrong  to-day  has  always 
been  wrong  —  in  itself  I  do  not  think  so;  but, 
granting  the  unchangeable  moral  quality  of  the 
act,  it  does  not  follow  that  all  men  at  all  times  have 
the  same  material  or  opportunity  for  forming  a  true 
judgment.     We  know  they  have  not. 

The  result  of  this,  if  correct,  is  not  to  justify  a 
command  of  God;  for,  if  of  God,  it  does  not  need 
justification.  The  point  is  that  in  the  gradual  educa- 
tion of  a  race,  or  in  the  development  of  a  Divine 
purpose,  the  commands  of  God  must  adapt  them- 
selves to  that  which  is  possible  to  the  will  of  man 
at  the  particular  time,  or  in  the  particular  people. 


INTERCOURSE  127 


That  man  may  fulfil  his  destiny,  God  has  given  him 
a  will,  which  He  will  not  coerce.  To  forward  His 
purpose  He  will  use  every  method  of  persuasion,  as 
men  use  persuasion  of  many  kinds  to  win  others  to 
a  line  of  conduct;  but  He  will  not  force.  Much 
less  will  He  violate  conscience,  His  own  constituted 
minister  and  servant.  It  is  inconceivable  that  to- 
day He  would  lay  upon  us  a  command  such  as  that 
concerning  the  Canaanites,  or  to  Abraham  to  sacri- 
fice Isaac;  but  it  was  through  such  means  at  that 
time,  which  did  not  strain  the  consciences  of  those 
addressed,  —  however  much  it  may  have  their  feel- 
ings, —  that  He  brought  about  the  development 
of  Israel  till  it  issued  in  Christ,  with  all  that  Christ 
means  to  our  modern  thought,  including  aversion 
to  bloodshed. 

In  their  stage  of  development  Israel  could  not 
have  resisted  the  religious  and  moral  temptations 
of  Canaan.  As  a  matter  of  historical  record  they 
did  not;  but  the  effect  of  the  command  was  to  pre- 
serve the  sound  tradition  in  the  faithful  minority. 
Equally  in  that  stage  their  conscience,  their  moral 
sense,  would  not  be  injured  by  the  command  to 
slay  all  their  enemies;  for  in  it  there  would  be  no 
suggestion  of  wrong.  The  peremptoriness  of  the 
mandate  probably  indicates  that  their  natural  feel- 
ing was  averse  from  it;  and  in  fact  they  complied 
imperfectly.  In  this  imperfection  they  may  have 
violated  conscience;  but  it  would  not  be  shocked  by 
the  command  to  kill.  Centuries  later,  the  Greeks  of 
the  brilliant  intellectual  days  of  Pericles,  iEschylus, 
and  Sophocles,  saw  in  the  sparing  of  captives'  lives 


128         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

a  question  only  of  expediency,  not  of  moral  right. 
So  the  conscience  of  the  Exodus  would  not  be  re- 
volted by  that  conception  of  solidarity  in  family 
and  race  life,  which  involved  in  a  common  destruc- 
tion men,  women,  and  children. 

Abraham's  decision  to  sacrifice  his  son  ^  may 
have  been  the  reflection,  in  a  highly  rehgious  man, 
of  the  religious  practices  of  the  land  whence  he 
came  out.  We  now  understand  better  as  to  the  deed; 
possibly  it  would  be  happy  if  we  could  parallel  the 
will;  for,  to  him,  compliance  with  conscience  pre- 
served from  moral  deterioration,  which  refusal 
would  have  entailed.  Let  it  be  said  in  passing 
that  God's  approval,  of  the  will  which  the  act  ex- 
pressed, seems  to  shed  a  flood  of  light  upon  the 
expression  "Son,"  in  the  Triune  Name  which  sums 
up  to  man  the  completeness  of  the  Divine  Being; 
and  upon  Man's  redemption  by  the  atoning  death 
of  the  Son  of  God.  Abraham  emerged  into  clearer 
light;  the  beginning,  indeed,  of  that  clearer  Hght 
which  we  have  inherited,  and  perhaps  too  much 
attribute  to  ourselves.  The  act  in  itself  is  the  same; 
the  man  is  one;  the  conscience  is  seen  in  two  stages, 
an  advance  typical  of  that  of  his  descendants. 

No  one  doubts  that  Abraham's  feelings  were 
wrung  to  their  uttermost  by  the  purpose  to  sacrifice 
his  son;  nor  need  we  doubt  that  the  Jews  of  the 
Exodus  would  be  prompted  by  natural  pity,  as  well 
as  by  lower  motives,  to  spare  many  of  their  enemies. 
The  command  was  necessary,  and  it  had  regard  to 
the  consciences  of  them  to  whom  it  was  issued. 
*  Genesis,  xxii,  1-19. 


INTERCOURSE  129 


These  are  conditions  of  successful  legislation,  of 
moral,  social,  and  political  progress,  always.  To- 
day we  sum  them  up  in  such  familiar  expression  as 
that  legislation  cannot  go  far  in  advance  of  public 
opinion;  that  laws  which  have  not  that  support 
cannot  be  enforced.  The  reformer  must  submit  to 
the  limitations  imposed  by  the  inability  to  force  a 
measure  too  much  ahead  of  popular  sentiment. 
The  fanatic  will  not,  and  fails.  He  may  help  change 
opinion,  but  otherwise  is  not  immediately  useful. 

But,  when  law  is  opportune,  an  immense  step  is 
made  in  giving  legal  sanction,  and  imposing  legal 
obligation.  What  is  thus  true  of  human  law  is 
vastly  more  true  of  that  which  the  conscience  accepts 
as  of  Divine  command;  the  recognition  of  an  un- 
seen, all  seeing,  Being  which  underlies  the  power  of 
an  oath.  It  may  be,  for  instance,  that  the  command- 
ments of  the  Decalogue  have  an  antecedent  secular 
history,  as  some  modern  research  claims;  but  it  is 
none  the  less  evident  that  a  decisive  step  in  advance, 
a  fundamental  change  of  sanction,  was  effected  by 
the  transactions  of  Sinai.  Jehovah,  the  lawmaker 
of  the  Jews,  imposed  obligation  where  otherwise 
human  weakness,  or  desire,  or  covetousness,  might 
have  failed;  He  gave  sanction  to  practices  with 
which  the  then  state  of  society  could  not  yet  dis- 
pense. It  is  a  very  superficial  error  to  see  in  the 
institution  of  the  personal  Avenger  of  Blood, ^  of 
the  Old  Testament,  merely  an  anticipation  of  the 
lawless  vengeance  of  a  modern  personal  feud.  It 
was  the  imposition   upon   a  particular  person  of  a 

^  Numbers,  xxxv,  10-21.     Deuteronomy,  xix,  11-13. 
9 


130         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

duty  to  society  and  to  the  dead,  —  a  duty  consonant 
to  current  notions  of  right  and  wrong.  The  Avenger 
of  Blood  is  formally  constituted  an  official  of  the 
law.  What  public  opinion  in  primitive  development 
approved,  and  expected,  is  made  a  matter  of  con- 
science, an  obligation,  which  it  is  not  optional  to 
disregard.  The  motive,  in  which  lies  the  moral 
value  of  every  act,  is  purged  and  exalted.  The 
competency  of  the  sanction  preserves  the  integrity 
of  the  conscience;  as,  for  example,  a  surgeon's  sanc- 
tion justifies  a  family's  consent  to  a  dangerous 
operation  upon  an  unconscious  member.  Humanly 
speaking,  the  method  was  the  best  then  available; 
the  organization  of  society  not  having  reached  yet 
the  point  of  a  permanent  staff  of  officials  adequate 
to  the  particular  duties. 

We  have  had  the  same  stage  of  primitive  society 
reproduced  casually  in  modern  times.  Vigilance 
Committees  have  been  the  Avenger  of  Blood,  justi- 
fied before  God  and  man  in  main  idea,  not  neces- 
sarily in  particular  acts.  The  evil  to  be  deplored 
has  not  been  the  Vigilance  Committee,  but  the  social 
conditions  which  made  it  necessary.  The  condi- 
tions were  those  of  the  Jews  of  the  Exodus.  The 
Avenger  of  Blood  then  was  needed;  to-day  he  is 
ordinarily  an  anachronism.  Yet  should  law  break 
down,  as  in  New  Orleans  twenty  years  ago  before 
the  Mafia,  is  the  anachronism  in  the  vengeance,  or 
in  the  failure  of  the  law,  which  looses  the  bonds  of 
society  ^  Be  it  noted,  however,  that  while  Jehovah 
adopted.  He  also  reformed.  Amendments  were  in- 
troduced  which    reduced   the   evils   attendant   upon 


INTERCOURSE  131 


personal  execution  of  judgment,  and  contained  the 
germ  of  further  amehoration.^  His  command,  in 
short,  was  not  far  off,  and  led  upward. 

It  has  seemed  impossible  wholly  to  avoid  con- 
sideration of  what  are  called  "difficulties,"  the 
effect  of  which  is  thought  to  invalidate  the  continuity 
and  oneness  of  the  revelation  of  God  in  the  Old  and 
New  Testaments.  To  demonstrate  that  both  Records 
are  of  and  from  the  one  God,  that  in  and  through 
both  we  can  have  Intercourse  with  Him,  which  is 
our  present  theme,  it  is  for  many  necessary  to  see 
reconciled  discrepancies  of  action,  which  to  them 
appear  the  outcome  of  opposing  principles,  whereas 
they  are  only  modifications  due  to  external  con- 
ditions. It  might  perhaps  be  thought  enough  to 
cite  Jesus  Christ,  Who  sees  no  such  lapse  nor  in- 
consistence. His  "But  I  say  unto  you  "  ^  is  not  in 
His  understanding  a  contradiction,  but  an  outgrowth, 
the  culmination  of  a  progress  from  the  Law,  through 
the  Prophets,  to  Himself.  But  the  "difficulties" 
exist,  or  are  made,  and  to  meet  them  to  some  slight 
degree  seems  requisite,  when  considering  the  fitness 
of  the  Old  Testament  with  the  New  to  minister  to 
intercourse  with  God. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  replies  suggested,  as 
far  as  valid,  apply  to  the  so-styled  "imprecations" 
in  the  Psalms.  There  may  have  been  in  the  con- 
ditions contemporary  with  them  habits  of  thought, 
mental  and  moral  conceptions,  not  yet  outgrown, 
which  rendered  such  expressions  fit  means  for  God 

*  Numbers,  xxxv,  6-15.     Deuteronomy,  xix,  4-10. 
2  St.  Matthew,  v,  17,  22,  28,  32,  34,  39,  44. 


132         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

to  communicate  then  with  man,  or  with  the  par- 
ticular person.  Many  solutions  have  been  proposed 
by  apologists;  and  to  myself  they  have  constituted 
no  insuperable  difficulty.  Most  of  us,  in  fact,  have 
had  to  see  or  know  conditions,  in  which  a  thorough 
cursing,  with  all  its  worst  consequences,  would  not 
in  our  calmest  consideration  seem  to  overgo  the 
iniquity  against  which  they  were  directed.  Towards 
that  which  is  wholly  evil,  whether  a  deed  or  a  person, 
hatred  is  a  proper  sentiment.  It  is  an  essentially 
different  thing  from  hatred  towards  a  personal 
enemy;  indeed,  is  the  natural  and  correct  obverse 
of  love  to  God  and  to  good.  But  there  need  be  no 
trouble  in  admitting  that,  whatever  their  full  justifica- 
tion then,  imprecatory  words  are  an  anachronism 
in  Christian  mouths  now;  as  much  out  of  date  as 
the  Avenger  of  Blood,  or  the  need  to  extirpate  a 
heathen  race  because  of  the  moral  weakness  of  a 
Christian  community.  If,  after  two  thousand  years 
of  knowledge  of  Christ,  we  cannot  survive  such  test, 
it  is  we,  not  they,  who  have  so  failed  as  to  justify 
extermination. 

Thus  again,  when  arbitrary  or  misleading  action 
is  attributed  to  God,  as  being  His  own  originative 
purpose,  and  not  merely  His  allowance  of  an  evil 
will  persisting  in  its  own  course,  as  in  the  hardening 
of  Pharaoh's  heart,^  or  in  the  story  of  the  lying  spirit 
sent  forth  by  Jehovah  to  deceive  Ahab  to  his  destruc- 
tion,^ it  may  well  be  that  such  a  refinement  of  distinc- 
tion, as  between  doing  and  permitting,  might  not  be 

^  Exodus,  iv,  21 ;  vii,  3;  ix,  12;  x,  i. 
^  I  Kings,  xxii,  19-23. 


INTERCOURSE  133 


fitted  to  the  comprehension  of  a  primitive  community. 
It  might  induce  misconception;  might,  for  instance, 
favor  the  error  which  historically  has  played  no 
small  part  in  the  intellectual  progress  of  the  race, 
attracting  some  of  its  most  brilliant  minds,  of  a 
duality  of  sovereign  powers  in  the  universe  —  one 
good,  one  evil — instead  of  the  one  God,  the  knowledge 
of  Whom  is  the  message  of  the  two  Testaments. 
The  very  early  story  of  Joseph  and  his  brethren 
preserves  this  distinction  clearly;^  yet  it  has  been 
used  quite  recently  as  a  proof  of  the  misleading 
character  of  parts  of  the  Bible  narrative  in  attribut- 
ing evil  to  God. 

Transcending  all  arguments,  all  other  sanctions 
or  assurance  concerning  the  oneness  of  the  spirit 
and  of  the  God  in  the  Old  Testament  and  in  the 
New,  is  the  sweeping  endorsement  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  in  the  words,  "I  have  not  come  to  destroy 
the  Law  and  the  Prophets,  but  to  fulfil.  They  testify 
of  Me."  ^  "The  Law  and  the  Prophets"  was  a 
current  phrase,  covering  by  accepted  implication 
the  canonical  "Scriptures"  of  the  Jews  of  Christ's 
time  on  earth;  substantially  the  Old  Testament  as 
we  have  it.  His  repeated  expressions  to  this  effect 
receive  from  Him,  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount, 
repeated  illustrations ;  in  some  of  which  fulfilment, 
in  the  direction  of  advance,  and  not  at  all  of  annul- 
ment, is  obvious  at  once.  But  in  other  instances  He 
apparently  repeals   a  law,  —  destroys ;    and   a  mo- 

^  Genesis,  xlv,  4-8;   1,  15-20. 

^  St.  Matthew,  V,  17-20.  St.  Luke,  xxiv,  25-27.  St.  John,  v, 
39,  46,  47.     Acts,  X,  43;  xiii,  27-38. 


134         THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

merit's  consideration  is  necessary  to  realize  that  He 
does  not.  "An  eye  for  an  eye,"  becomes  in  His 
mouth  "a  cheek  for  a  cheek,"  "a  mile  for  a  mile;"  ^ 
but  the  cheek  and  the  mile  are  the  sufferer's  own, 
his  willing  concession,  not  his  exaction  from  his 
enemy.  These  are  limited  appHcations,  illustrations, 
of  His  own  consummate  act :  He  gave  His  own  life 
a  ransom  for  the  life  of  His  enemies.^  God,  having 
suffered  from  Man  deadly  wrong,  gives  His  Life 
for  Man;  takes  to  Himself  human  life  for  this  ex- 
press end,  that  He  may  lay  it  down  for  them  who 
injured  Him.^  It  must  be  recognized  that  the  Old 
Testament  command  was  a  law  of  strict  and  level 
justice,  confining  retaHation  to  an  equal  measure. 
It  was  an  advance  upon  the  natural  human  instinct, 
strong  to-day,  to  exact  more,  —  to  have  punishment 
as  well  as  indemnity.  It  is  plain  then  that  the  Old 
Testament  already  made  advance  in  a  direction 
which  Christ's  precept  simply  followed  farther. 

Christ's  endorsement  to  the  Jewish  Testament  is 
that  of  One  possessing  authority,  a  characteristic 
recognized  by  His  contemporary  hearers.^  That 
authority  is  farther  avouched  to  us  by  His  Resur- 
rection.^ If  Christ's  body  mouldered  in  the  grave, 
our  Faith  is  vain;  ^  we  may  cease  argument.  If  He 
rose  again,  it  is  manifest  that  there  was  that  in  His 
Personality  which  at  the  least  fitted  Him  to  pro- 
nounce as  He  did  upon  the  Old  Testament,   as  a 

^  St.  Matthew,  V,  38-44.        ^  Ihid.^  xx,  28.     Romans,  v,  8-1 1. 

^  Colossians,  i,  19-22.     Ephesians,  ii,  1-7. 

*  St.  Matthew,  vii,  28,  29;   xxi,  23,  24.    St.  Mark,  i,  22,  27. 

^  Romans,  i,  4.  ^  i  Corinthians,  xv,  14-18. 


INTERCOURSE  135 


medium  by  which  God  communicated  to  man,  and 
as  a  record  which  He  Himself  understood  and 
fulfilled.  This  does  not  commit  Him  to  the  integrity 
of  particular  passages  or  to  decision  as  to  whether 
certain  accounts  are  literal  or  symbolical.  Even  in 
an  instance  apparently  so  explicit  as  His  question 
based  on  Psalm  ex;  ^  if  we  understand  Him  to 
affirm  by  implication  that  David  did  say,  "Jehovah 
said  unto  my  Lord,  sit  Thou  on  my  right  hand," 
we  can  accept  the  affirmation  as  to  the  utterance, 
without  denying  critical  results  as  to  the  date  of 
the  psalm  quoted.  It  is  perfectly  possible  that  David 
may  have  used  the  words  and  another  writer  have 
repeated  them  from  tradition.  One  who  has  power 
to  lay  down  His  life  and  to  take  it  again  ^  may  surely 
have  knowledge  as  far  as  a  fact  of  this  character. 

To  the  Jew  of  that  day  the  psalm  was  David's 
own.  Christ  talks  to  the  men  of  His  time  according 
to  their  progress,  as  in  past  centuries  He  had  spoken 
to  their  ancestors;  and  necessarily,  for  when  He 
goes  farther  they  attempt  to  stone  Him.^  His  state- 
ment, "Your  father  Abraham  rejoiced  to  see  my 
day;  before  he  was,  I  am,"  ^  asserts  at  the  least 
that  He  was  contemporary  with  Abraham  and  knew 
his  feelings;  and  by  inevitable  inference  with  David 
and  could  know  his  words.  If  He  is  not  to  be  credited 
when  He  tells  us  of  such  earthly  things,  by  what 
title  is  He  to  be  believed  when  He  tells  us  of  heavenly 
things  ^  ^    Let  us  have  every  ray  of  light  that  reason 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxii,  41-46.    St.  Mark,  xii,  35-37. 

^  St.  John,  X,  17,  18.  ^  Ibid.,  viii,  59;  x,  31. 

*  Ibid.y  viii,  57,  58.  ^  Ibid.,  iii,  11,  12. 


136         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

and  learning  can  give;  but  if  we  are  to  accept  on 
Christ's  authority  nothing  that  we  cannot  see  demon- 
strated, let  us  frankly  give  up  the  pretence  of  walking 
by  faith. 

Christ's  endorsement  of  the  Old  Testament  is  to 
its  character  as  a  witness/  and  is  illustrated  by  the 
limitation  which  human  wisdom  has  placed  upon 
testimony  to  a  witness's  character,  —  that  it  must  be 
general,  as  to  trustworthiness.  Considering  the 
avowed  purpose  of  the  Record  which  these  books 
contain,  testimony  to  trustworthiness  is  testimony 
to  authority,^  —  that  they  are  authoritative, — the 
especial  quality  noted  in  the  teaching  of  Christ  Him- 
self. Christ's  testimony  to  the  early  Scriptures,  as  to 
their  being  a  communication  from  God,  is  thus  gen- 
eral, but  it  is  emphatic.  The  words,  "If  they  hear 
not  Moses  [the  Law]  and  the  Prophets,  neither  will 
they  be  persuaded,  though  one  rose  from  the  dead,"  ^ 
sorrowfully  in  the  outcome  fulfilled,  are  as  absolute 
an  attestation  as  could  well  be  phrased  to  the  spirit- 
ual power  of  the  Jewish  Scriptures;  and  to  affirm 
such  power  is  to  say  that  they  come  from  God. 

The  "Rising  from  the  Dead,"  which  had  not  yet 
even  occurred  when  these  words  were  spoken,  is 
the  summary  of  the  Gospel  witness.  Herein  there- 
fore Christ  places  Moses  and  the  Prophets  on  the 
same  plane  with  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel,  as  a 
means  of  persuasion  unto  the  acceptance  which  is 
salvation.      The    incidental    introduction    of    these 

*  St.  Luke,  xxiv,  25-27,  32,  44-48.     St.  John,  v,  39,  46,  47. 
^  St.  Matthew,  v,  17-20;  xxiii,  1-3. 
^  St.  Luke,  xvi,  31. 


INTERCOURSE  137 


words  shows  His  general  attitude,  —  habit  of  thought. 
It  not  only  assures  that  the  Jewish  Scriptures  were 
from  the  One  God,  and  sufficient  in  their  own  time 
to  the  men  to  whom  they  were  specially  addressed; 
it  affirms  directly  that  in  other  times  the  spirit  which 
receives  one  will  receive  the  ouier,  as  equally  a  revela- 
tion from  the  same  God  for  the  same  purposes.  So 
St.  Paul  writes  to  Timothy,  rejoicing  that  through 
his  Jewish  mother  he  had  from  a  babe  known  the 
sacred  writings,  "  which  are  able  to  make  thee  wise 
unto  salvation  through  faith  which  is  in  Christ 
Jesus.''  ^  Not  only  the  infancy  but  the  youth  of 
Timothy  antedated  the  New  Testament  writings; 
the  witness  is  to  the  Old  Testament  and  to  its  general 
character.  Christ  and  St.  Paul  give  frequent  inter- 
pretation of  the  meaning  of  particular  passages,  and 
such  explanation  apparently  must  involve  specific 
acceptance  of  them,  not  always  and  necessarily 
literal.  It  may  be  illustrative.  Explanation  of  either 
kind,  however,  is  no  substitute  for  the  general  en- 
dorsement; this  it  can  neither  enforce  nor  invalidate, 
unless  it  can  be  shown  to  affect  the  authority  of  the 
speaker,  Christ. 

The  consecutive  relation  of  the  two  Testaments, 
and  at  the  same  time  their  continued  application  to 
common  Hfe,  may  be  happily  illustrated  by  a  passage 
from  each.  Thus  the  Old,  "Thy  Word  is  a  lantern 
unto  my  feet,  and  a  light  unto  my  path."  ^  It  makes 
clear  the  way,  in  darkness.  Of  this  Christ's  version 
is    a    fulfilment :       **  I    [the    living    Word]    am    the 

^  2  Timothy,  i,  3-5;  iii,  14-17.     Acts,  xvi,  I. 
^  Psalm,  cxix,  105. 


138         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Way,"  ^  not  only  illuminate  the  way,  but  Myself  am 
it.  The  Person  Himself  is  the  Way;  His  example 
the  standard;  increasing  knowledge  of  Him  is  in- 
creasing light.  "The  path  of  the  Just  One  is  as  the 
shining  light  that  shineth  more  and  more  unto  the 
perfect  day."  ^  The  illuminative  power,  the  directive 
value,  of  the  written  Word  is  to  "  the  single  eye " 
matter  of  frequent  experience;  still  greater  is  the  Per- 
sonal example,  and  immediate  contact  with  the  living 
Word.  The  connection  of  the  two  is  not  that  of  mere 
development,  from  olden  time  onward  to  to-day; 
but  one  continually  renewed,  in  its  double  aspect, 
to  the  experience  of  believers  in  every  age.  The 
recurring  exigencies  of  life  bring  into  play  the  written 
words,  Old  or  New,  applicable  to  moments  of  perplex- 
ity or  difficulty;  and  not  only  does  light  stream  from 
the  words,  but  the  immediate  situation  itself  reflects 
back  elucidation  upon  them,  their  meaning  thence- 
forth is  plainer  than  ever  before.  Yet  there  are  mo- 
ments and  conditions  for  which  no  words,  however 
sacred,  give  account;  when  the  touch  is  not  of  words, 
but  with  a  Life. 

For  all  these  reasons  the  Christian  may  accept  the 
oneness  of  the  Bible,  in  that  it  is  a  communication 
from  one  Person,  God,  confirmed  to  us  by  Jesus 
Christ,  as  being  the  Same  who  spoke  in  and  through 
Him.  God,  who  in  these  last  days  hath  spoken  unto 
us  in  His  Son,  did  speak  also  in  old  time  to  the 
fathers  in  the  prophets,  by  divers  portions  and  in 
divers  manners.^    Like  the  two  dreams  of  Pharaoh,* 

^  St.  John,  xiv,  6.  ^  Proverbs,  iv,  18. 

^  Hebrews,  i,  i,  2.  *  Genesis,  xli,  25,  26. 


INTERCOURSE  139 


the  two  records  are  of  one  truth  of  God.  In  the  New 
as  in  the  Old  we  will  expect  those  to  whom  God  ad- 
dresses Himself  to  speak  and  write  as  men  of  their 
time;  rather,  that  God  will  speak  to  them  according 
to  the  rule  to  which  they  have  attained/  of  under- 
standing and  of  life.  It  is  partly  in  the  abundance 
of  these  correspondents  to  whom  God  addressed 
Himself,  their  divers  receptivities  and  characteristics, 
that  the  fullness  of  the  revelation  will  consist;  as 
every  subject  in  the  development  of  which  men  are 
made  the  instruments  will  receive  light  from  the 
numbers  employed  in  it. 

This,  however,  affects  only  the  manner  of  the  com- 
munication; not  its  substance.  It  involves  elucida- 
tion ;  not  addition  to  the  deposit  of  fact,  much  less 
diminution  of  it.  Progress  in  science  is  a  process  of 
elucidation ;  the  truths  of  nature,  discovered  or  yet 
undiscovered,  are  its  basis  of  research,  and  they  do 
not  change.  If  they  did,  science  as  a  method  of 
investigation  might  last,  but  all  present  conclusions 
would  collapse  in  confusion.  Imagine  the  results, 
should  gravitation  cease  to  be.  Christ,  His  Person, 
avouched  by  His  Resurrection,^  is  the  spiritual  centre 
of  gravitation  which  holds  in  place  and  guides  in 
movement  the  system  called  Christianity.  The  un- 
searchable riches  of  Christ,  of  which  St.  Paul  speaks,^ 
are  shown  in  the  effects  produced  progressingly  by 
the  power  which  He  is,  developed  by  continuous 
elucidation     through     the    Christian    centuries;    as 

*  Philippians,  iii,  16. 

^  Romans,  i,  3,  4.     i  Corinthians,  xv,  13,  14,  17. 

^  Ephesians,  iii,  8. 


140         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

electricity  is  the  power,  long  unrecognized  by  man, 
the  elucidation  of  which,  still  incomplete,  we  now 
have  around  us  in  forms  unknown  to  our  predeces- 
sors. A  force  denied  is  a  force  ignored;  and  a  force 
ignored,  as  electricity  long  was,  is  a  force  non-existent 
for  useful  ends.  Alchemy  and  astrology  ceased  to 
exert  influence  when  men  became  satisfied  of  the 
non-existence  of  the  basis  upon  which  they  rested. 

As  a  philosophy,  or  as  an  ethical  system  only,  built 
up  upon  the  teachings  of  Christ,  Christianity  may 
play  a  part  in  the  world ;  but  as  a  spiritual  power  it 
cannot  endure  in  the  denial  of  the  Christ  of  the 
Gospels,  of  His  Person  and  His  Resurrection.  The 
basis  of  fact  disappears.  This  basis  accepted,  eluci- 
dation progresses,  as  a  child  in  and  from  the  womb 
of  its  mother  develops  into  the  power  of  maturity. 
This  elucidation,  in  the  Old  and  in  the  New,  differs 
from  the  elucidations  of  Science  chiefly  in  this :  that 
the  subject  matter  of  research  and  of  elucidation  in 
the  Testaments  is  the  primary  Personal  cause,  God; 
whereas  Science  deals  with  an  array  of  secondary 
causes,  which  are  manifestations  of  God's  creative 
power.  It  follows  naturally  that,  while  we  claim  for 
science,  and  for  all  good  work,  the  cooperative  guid- 
ance of  the  Holy  Spirit,  God  working  with  man's 
natural  efforts,  for  external  effects,  we  find  in  the 
revelation  of  the  Bible  something  different  as  well  as 
higher;  the  Holy  Spirit  working  in  man,  to  effects 
to  which  man  contributes  only  receptivity  and  prayer. 

Prayer  indeed  is  ultimately  a  receptive  disposition, 
a  disposition  towards  intercourse;  and  such  dispo- 
sition welcomes  the  increase  of  knowledge  of  the 


INTERCOURSE  141 


truth  through  repeated  experience.  Only  within  a 
half-century  has  slavery  disappeared  from  Christen- 
dom; but  its  disappearance  was  insured  from  the 
moment  the  power  of  Christ  became  incarnate,  when 
He  took  upon  Himself  the  form  of  a  bond  servant, 
and  was  made  in  the  likeness  of  men.  The  end  was 
in  that  beginning,  when  God  took  unto  Himself  the 
flesh  common  to  master  and  to  slave.  Starting  from 
that  known  truth,  St.  Paul's  elucidation  did  not  carry 
him  to  recommend  herein  a  social  revolution;  but 
the  spirit  of  final  abolition  was  in  his  exposition  of 
love  as  by  Jesus  Christ  commanded,  with  a  direct 
application  to  slavehood.^  To  antiquity  this  was  a 
mental  and  moral  revelation,  which  could  not  but 
issue  in  a  social  revulsion.  The  leaven  wrought 
through  centuries  of  pondering.  To  treat  a  slave  as 
a  brother  became  an  act  of  obligation;  to  free  a  slave 
an  act  of  mercy.  Man  stood  receptive.  In  Christian 
estimation,  the  slave  ceased  to  be  only  a  chattel,  and 
became  a  member  of  Christ.  To  this  there  could  be 
but  one  logical  result. 

This  instance  illustrates  well  the  effect  of  Inter- 
course with  God  by  His  written  Word,  which,  alike 
in  the  Old  Testament  and  the  New,  is  the  testimony, 
the  perpetual  manifestation,  of  the  living  Word, 
Jesus  Christ.  The  habitual  reader  of  the  Bible  is 
in  so  far  in  perpetual  communion,  intercourse,  with 
God.  He  is  perpetually  hearing,  constantly  associat- 
ing.    As  in  human  intercourse,   so  in   Divine,   the 

^  St.  Matthew,  XX,  25-28;  xxiii,  8-11.  Romans,  iii,  22.  i  Cor- 
inthians, vii,  22;  xii,  13.  Galatians,  iii,  28.  Ephesians,  vi,  5-9. 
Colossians,  iii,  11;   iv,  i.     i  Timothy,  vi,  i,  2.    Philemon,  16. 


142         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

influence  of  character  is  operating  continuously; 
while,  more  remittingly,  specific  words  fall  upon  the 
ear  with  that  opportune  force  which  makes  life  thence- 
after  other  and  better  than  before.  Moreover,  under- 
standing expands.  Progressive  intercourse  brings 
progressive  comprehension,  and  such  comprehension 
is  pro  tanto  revelation,  to  the  individual  or  to  the  race. 

Such  advance  is  not  marked  necessarily  by  con- 
sciousness at  the  moment.  In  intercourse  with  God, 
man  does  not  cease  to  be  man;  and  of  that  Friend 
appreciation  increases  as  of  other  friends,  and  as 
love  grows, — unobserved.  Habits  of  thought  are  ab- 
sorbed, unwittingly ;  points  of  view  are  assimilated ; 
the  very  tongue  of  the  Speaker  becomes  more  familiar, 
as  the  idiom  of  a  foreign  country  to  the  long  sojourner 
there,  until,  as  we  say,  he  speaks  like  a  native;  what 
is  apter,  hears  like  a  native.  Nor  should  we,  pursuing 
this  metaphor,  which  is  more  than  metaphor,  forget 
the  atmosphere  of  the  country,  which  is  that  of  our 
allegiance;  the  tonic  of  being  perpetually  in  contact 
with,  breathing  in,  the  spirit  of  the  living  God  through 
the  medium  of  His  words.  It  is  a  phase,  and  a  con- 
dition, of  that  vital  mystical  state  which  Jesus  Christ 
called  "abiding  in  Me,"  ^  —  the  Life  of  the  Christian. 
The  Old  Testament  has  its  consistent  version  :  Trust 
in  Jehovah,  and  do  good;  dwell  in  the  land  and 
verily  thou  shalt  be  fed.^ 

In  this  mutual  relation,  in  Man's  part  in  it,  it 
cannot  be  difficult  to  trace  that  element  of  human 
effort  which  we  know  as  Prayer.     Spiritual  recep- 

^  St.  John,  XV,  4-8.    I  Corinthians,  xii,  12,  27.    Ephesians,  v,  30. 
^  Psalm,  xxxvii,  3  (Psalter). 


INTERCOURSE  143 


tivity  is  not  merely  passive.  It  is  an  active  state; 
merely  to  dwell  is  active  choice,  involving  persist- 
ence of  effort,  —  a  condition  of  intense  and  multifold 
energy.  Prayer,  to  which  we  now  pass,  must  be 
regarded  primarily  in  this  light,  if  it  will  not  be  mis- 
conceived; which  it  continually  and  grossly  is.  The 
idle  impression  concerning  Praise,  that  it  is  a  form  of 
propitiatory  compliment,  transfers  itself  largely  to 
Prayer,  in  which  is  perceived  merely  indolent  asking, 
—  a  slightly  more  dignified  species  of  begging,  —  and 
naught  beyond.  But  to  see  in  the  Bible  the  Word 
of  God,  to  recognize  its  purpose  to  be  the  knowledge 
of  God,  places  the  reader  who  for  these  reasons  seeks 
it  in  the  position  at  once  of  one  who  asks;  asks  not 
indolently,  but  at  the  sacrifice  of  time,  the  exercise 
of  close  attention,  —  itself  no  slight  effort,  —  and,  as 
perception  increases,  asking  with  an  ever-growing 
play  of  mind  and  heart,  of  intelligence  and  of  emotion, 
which  not  only  produce  results  but  are  themselves  a 
weighty  exhibition  of  natural  powers  in  active  em- 
ployment. Quite  independent  of  the  effort  to  bind 
ourselves  to  an  occupation  to  which  at  the  moment 
we  may  be  reluctant,  to  read  is  hard  work;  and  the 
Bible  not  least,  but  most,  because  of  the  demands 
upon  faculties  spiritual  as  well  as  natural. 

Our  Lord's  successive  exhortations :  Ask,  and  ye 
shall  receive;  seek,  and  ye  shall  find;  knock,  and  it 
shall  be  opened  to  you,^  are  no  mere  iteration  of 
equivalents.  The  successive  rises  in  energy  are 
obvious,  when  once  noted;  but  though  the  several 
acts  have  a  common  characteristic.  Prayer,  the 
^  St.  Matthew,  vii,  7,  8. 


144        THE   LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

particular  manifestation  indicates  variety  of  occasion. 
In  serious  reading,  whatever  the  subject,  one  seeks; 
in  praying,  one  asks;  in  knocking,  one  perseveres, 
importunes,  in  the  face  of  difficulty,  manifesting  in 
intensified  form  that  expectation  and  desire  of  answer 
which  is  Faith,  and  upon  which  Christ  predicts  an 
assured  success/  Faith  itself,  the  condition  of  suc- 
cessful prayer,  is  not  merely  passive  acceptance,  but 
active  self-committal  to  a  choice  of  life  with  all  its 
requirements  and  consequences;  it  presupposes,  and 
has  been  preceded  by,  effort  mental  and  moral.  It 
is  of  God,  doubtless,  and  not  of  ourselves ;  ^  but  it 
is  so  just  as  a  harvest  is  of  God,  Who  has  given  the 
life  to  the  seed,  but  which  none  the  less  presupposes 
and  exacts  man's  cooperation  in  ploughing,  seeding, 
and  reaping.  Prayer,  of  course,  may  be  reduced  to  a 
mere  form,  often  thoughtless,  never  thought-full;  to 
a  bare  repetition  of  words  received  from  others. 
Even  so,  as  a  form,  in  a  day  of  need  it  may  prove  a 
help  to  better  things.  But  real  Prayer,  actual  Prayer, 
involves  much  more  than  the  act  itself,  however 
earnest.  It  includes  all  the  antecedent  dealings  with 
one's  self,  reflection  on  conditions,  faults,  duties, 
aspirations,  which  govern  conduct  of  life,  and  so 
furnish  the  material  for  prayer. 

Prayer,  in  short,  is  effort,  hard  work,  and  in  a 
double  sense.  It  is  internal  effort,  of  the  will,  to 
bring  our  own  powers,  of  heart  and  intellect,  and  sus- 
tained purpose,  with  all  that  we  include  in  Faith, 
into  an  effectual  operation;   while  externally  it  sets 

^  St.  Luke,  xi,  5-10;  xviii,  1-7.  St.  Matthew,  xxi,  18-22.  St. 
Mark,  xi,  12-14,  20-25.  ^  Ephesians,  ii,  8. 


INTERCOURSE  145 


in  motion  machinery  that  shall  contribute  to  a  result, 
which  may  be  either  within  or  without.  Whether  it 
be  for  the  transformation  of  character,  or  for  an  ac- 
cession of  personal  well  being,  or  for  some  object  or 
some  person  not  in  any  way  ourselves,  Prayer  is 
inherently  a  force;  demanding  energy  for  its  devel- 
opment and  manifesting  energy  in  its  operation. 
So  far  as  concerns  the  development  of  character, 
which  is  the  essence  of  personality,  it  is  an  exercise 
of  the  will  strictly  analogous  to  every  other  form  of 
self-discipline,  —  to  study,  to  control  of  inclinations, 
to  exertion  or  self-repression  of  any  kind.  That  it 
takes  the  form  of  simple  words,  uttered  or  unex- 
pressed, and  claims  to  issue  in  accomplishment  of 
deeds,  effecting  consequences  in  which  the  end  seems 
wholly  disproportioned  to  the  means,  makes  it  in  no 
sense  exceptional  to  experience.  Transformation  of 
energy  is  not  even  an  unscientific  conception;  the 
touching  of  a  button  explodes  a  charge  which  wrecks 
a  reef.  Prayer  undoubtedly  claims  not  only  to  affect 
spiritual  conditions  by  spiritual  means,  but  material 
conditions  as  well;  either  directly,  or  through  a 
series  of  intermediate  causes,  as  may  please  God. 

But  some  man  may  say:  How  can  Prayer  thus 
work,  and  what  is  the  manner  of  its  acting  ^  We  may 
reverently  paraphrase  the  well  known  reply  of  St. 
Paul  to  a  very  similar  interrogatory.^  Cast  thine  eye 
upon  the  processes  of  nature  everywhere  around  thee. 
Everywhere  is  seen  life  energizing,  the  work  of  the 
Creator,  in  plant  and  animal,  in  sea,  and  air,  and 
land,  independent    of   man   in  origin   and    process. 

^  I  Corinthians,  xv,  35-49. 
10 


146         THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

But  in  innumerable  directions  are  seen  also  the  same 
conditions  affected  by  man,  not  in  process  only,  but 
in  origin  also.  We  have  even  coined  a  word,  "  pro- 
create," to  create  for  the  Creator;  to  which  man  may 
refuse  compliance.  But  the  work  of  man  is  still 
more  evident  in  processes,  —  in  the  cultivated  field, 
in  streams  controlled,  in  forces  turned  to  use  from 
waste;  utilizing  an  apparent  prodigality  of  the  Crea- 
tor, which  may  yet  prove  a  foresight  for  the  days  of 
scarcity  threatening  the  world.  Civilization  is  simply 
the  work  of  God  through  man ;  as  Redemption  in  its 
broad  results  is  His  work,  through  man's  prayer 
appropriating  the  abounding  powers  of  Christ's  Life 
and  Death  and  Resurrection. 

In  the  conception  of  the  Bible,  throughout.  Prayer 
is  simply  a  Power  of  God  committed  to  human  hands, 
exercised  by  God-appointed  instruments  to  ends 
which  He  chooses  thus  to  effect,  and  will  not  other- 
wise accomplish.  It  is  a  spiritual  transaction,  a  cause 
which  has  its  promise  of  result,  through  the  Power 
which  created  the  universe  and  sustains  it  in  opera- 
tion. To  what  extreme  of  scope  this  effect  may  ex- 
tend is  no  more  to  be  defined  than  is  the  future  reach 
of  scientific  progress.  The  two  belong  to  different 
categories,  —  the  spiritual  and  the  natural;  but  they 
present  analogies.  Utilized  by  man  according  to  the 
conditions  imposed.  Prayer  is  Man  at  work,  —  putting 
into  operation  a  force,  the  development  of  which 
requires  on  his  part  intense  eflPort  and  the  employ- 
ment of  varied  means,  not  least  of  which  is  the  knowl- 
edge of  God,  with  the  obtaining  of  which  we  have 
but  just  now  been  concerned.     Manifestly,  however 


INTERCOURSE  147 


great  its  intrinsic  power,  and  manifold  its  modes  of 
action,  it,  like  electricity,  depends  for  efficiency  of 
result  upon  the  knowledge  and  care  of  the  operator, 
upon  his  habit  and  practice.  Like  the  inspiration 
of  the  Word,  the  quality  and  power  of  the  prayer  will 
depend  in  part  upon  him  who  prays.  God's  part  is 
constant,  as  is  a  natural  force;  the  conditions  and 
the  objects  of  application  vary  innumerably,  and 
with  them  the  consequences. 

Thus  the  greatly  perverted  proverb,  Lahorare  est 
Orare,  —  never  more  misleading  than  in  this  hurried 
day  of  crowded  institutional  as  well  as  personal  activ- 
ities, —  is  only  one  half  of  the  truth,  and  that  the 
lesser  half.  The  obverse,  that  he  who  prays  also 
works,  puts  God  first  in  the  joint  action.  "He  who 
works,  prays,"  puts  man  first;  if  indeed  it  does  not 
ignore  God  altogether.  The  Bible  makes  no  such 
mistake.  It  puts  God  always  first,  yet  leaves  not  out 
man's  part.  Except  the  Lord  keep  the  house,  their 
labor  is  but  lost  that  build  it.^  "  Except  the  Lord " 
is  Or  are ;  "that  build  it"  is  Lahorare.  "Except  the 
Lord  keep  the  city,  the  watchman  waketh  but  in 
vain,"  ^  does  not  dispense  the  watchman  from  his  task. 
Our  Lord's  "Watch  and  Pray,"  ^  the  summary  of 
the  Christian's  duty  in  confronting  life,  equally  recog- 
nizes both.  "Watch"  specifies  man's  peculiar  part; 
"Pray"  recognizes  God's  indispensable  contribution. 
Neither  agent  is  absent  from  either  act;  for  as  man 
cannot  effectively  watch  without  God's  help,  neither 

^  Psalm,  cxxvii,  i. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  41.  St.  Mark,  xiii,  33-37.  St.  Luke, 
xxi,  36.     Ephesians,  vi,  18.     Colossians,  iv,  2. 


148         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

can  God  perfectly  help  without  man's  prayer.  Prayer 
is  the  outcome,  and  the  efficacious  exertion,  of  man's 
will,  cooperating  with  that  of  God.  Effort  in  its 
proper  place  is  silent  prayer;  but  prayerless  effort 
is  not  work,  but  labor. 

For  God  to  provide  for  us  without  our  asking  would 
be  to  provide  without  our  action.  Not  to  pray  is 
the  real  human  laziness,  —  expecting  God  to  help  us 
without  helping  ourselves.  His  doing  so  would  be 
equally  provision;  but  the  provision  a  father  makes 
for  a  baby,  not  that  which  he  gives  by  aiding  a  full 
grown  son  to  carry  on  his  business.  Prayer  is  work ; 
the  power,  and  the  instrument,  by  means  of  which 
a  man  accomplishes  his  task.  An  infant  cannot  use 
it,  and  so  will  receive  unasked  provision.  A  man,  the 
holiest,  the  most  practised,  will  not  use  it  perfectly, 
and  so  may,  doubtless  will,  receive  more  than  he 
asks:  "exceeding  abundantly  above  all  that  we 
ask  or  think";  ^  but  this  does  not  contradict  the  fact 
that  in  prayer  man  is  working,  doing  his  part,  as  a 
ploughman  guiding  the  plough,  the  appointed  part 
of  a  man,  of  whom  God  requires  cooperation,  not  of 
a  child  as  yet  incapable  of  work.  In  this  way  most 
truly  "God  helps  them  who  help  themselves." 

This  ancient  proverb  doubtless  echoes  the  misap- 
prehensions current  as  to  the  moral  quality  of  Prayer, 
—  as  to  the  motive,  and  the  moral  and  mental  energy 
constituting  it.  To  ask  appears  a  thing  so  simple  in 
conception,  and  so  weak  in  execution,  as  to  be  not 
only  inadequate  to  great  ends  but,  if  successful,  a 
discreditable  means  of  obtaining  them.  I  go,  say, 
*  Ephesians,  Hi,  20. 


INTERCOURSE  149 


to  a  rich  man,  and  with  no  other  reason  than  my 
wish  and  pleasure  ask  him  to  give  me  a  miUion 
dollars.  He  does  so;  I  should  be  ashamed  of  the 
request,  and  equally  ashamed  of  accepting.  That 
this  illustrates  a  very  current  estimate  of  prayer  is 
indubitable;  but  the  analogies  break  down  through- 
out. Prayer  is  very  complex  in  conception  and  ex- 
ceedingly difficult  in  execution ;  yet,  being  all  this,  it 
is  a  condition,  a  stipulation,  imposed  upon  man  by 
God,  —  or,  rather,  inherent  in  the  gift  of  a  free  will 
capable  of  response  to  God,  —  upon  compliance 
with  which  certain  results  are  promised.  The 
condition,  or  stipulation,  taken  with  the  promise, 
constitute  a  covenant,  or  contract;  and  man's  compli- 
ance, the  compliance  of  his  will,  entitles  him  to  claim 
the  promise.  It  is  no  mere  beggary,  but  the  rendering 
of  a  stipulated  quid  pro  quo,  like  the  result  flowing 
from  complying  with  a  law  of  nature. 

For  argument's  sake,  the  case  is  thus  stated  nakedly 
and  without  a  qualification  imperatively  necessary 
to  proper  understanding.  As  St.  Paul  puts  it,  the 
gifts  of  God,  such  as  prayer  and  its  answer,  are  not 
of  debt,  but  of  favor.  Man  cannot  claim  as  due  to 
his  merits;  he  claims  only  in  virtue  of  the  free  promise 
made  by  God,  and  of  his  own  will  to  comply,  shown 
in  hearty  effort.  Were  his  compliance  even  perfect, 
his  claim  would  be  only  to  a  promise,  in  itself  an 
unearned  favor;  but  inasmuch  as  with  the  best  men 
compliance  is  defective,  the  fulfilling  of  God's  part, 
of  the  promise,  is  doubly  a  favor.  The  extreme  pres- 
entation of  the  case,  as  that  of  a  contract  fulfilled, 
therefore    fails.     Nevertheless,    the   justice    of  God 


150        THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

recognizes  that  justice  is  only  complete  when  man- 
ifested in  mercy;  that  man,  under  his  load  of  imper- 
fection, does  not  receive  justice  if  mercy  do  not  enter 
into  the  settlement.  There  is  demanded  therefore 
not  the  full  tale  of  accomplishment,  but  the  clear 
good  will  of  the  heart.  "God  is  not  unrighteous,  to 
forget  your  works  and  labor  which  proceed  of  love."  ^ 
"  If  there  be  first  a  willing  mind,  it  is  accepted  ac- 
cording to  that  a  man  hath,  not  according  to  that 
he  hath  not."  ^  I  do  not  attempt  here  to  enter  into 
the  question  of  the  Atonement  by  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  whereby  alone,  in  mysterious  way,  God  is  en- 
abled thus  to  reconcile  justice  with  mercy.  To  this 
I  am  inadequate,  and  am  endeavoring  only  to  apply 
to  the  specific  subject  of  Prayer  those  considerations 
which  redeem  it  from  the  reproach  of  facility,  inad- 
equacy, and  beggary. 

Prayer  then  is  no  mere  idle  offering  of  empty 
words  which  cost  nothing.  Although  in  itself  in- 
adequate to  the  benefits  it  assures,  they,  like  the 
fruits  of  the  ground,  are  won  by  the  sweat  of  the 
brow,  —  by  mental  toil,  by  steady  effort  of  will,  by 
moral  strain,  at  the  expenditure  often  of  profound 
and  exhausting  emotion.  Of  Jesus  Christ  we  are 
told  that  being  in  an  agony,  ^  He  prayed  more  ear- 
nestly. Prayer,  though  inadequate,  is  as  the  pay- 
ment the  poor  man  may  make  to  a  physician  for  the 


*  Hebrews,  vi,  lo.     St.  Matthew,  x,  40-42;  xxv,  40.     Acts,  x, 

35- 

^  2  Corinthians,  viii,  12. 

^  St.  Luke,  xxii,  44.    Hebrews,  v,  7.     Recall  that  the  primary 
meaning  of  agony  is  intense  action,  —  struggle. 


INTERCOURSE  151 


healing  he  receives.  It  measures  neither  the  skill 
of  the  physician  nor  the  relief  bestowed;  but  it  is 
what  the  man  can.  In  the  eyes  of  justice  it  well  may 
be  more  than  a  richer  man  could  do,  as  the  widow's 
mite  excelled  in  worth  all  other  gifts,  because  rep- 
resenting real  deprivation.  It  is  the  privilege  of 
poverty  over  wealth  that  it  can  so  sacrifice;  can 
offer  that  which  costs  dearly.  So  stands  the  prayer 
of  the  Christian  before  his  God;  bare  of  value,  but 
costly. 

Prayer  then  is  effort,  personal  and  internal.  It 
is  a  causative  power.  In  its  perfection,  as  found  in 
Jesus  Christ,  it  presupposes  the  high  training  of  an 
athlete.  Consider  Christ's  training  as  Man.  No 
bowing  of  man's  intellect  to  faith,  or  compliance 
with  the  self-abnegations  required  by  faith,  parallels 
the  humility  which  emptied  itself  of  the  Divine  glory, 
and  complied  with  the  limitations  of  human  nature.^ 
The  incidents  of  His  career  of  humiliation,  —  lowly 
birth,  poverty,  neglect,  misunderstanding,  suffering, 
the  forsaking  of  friends,  apparent  utter  failure, 
Ignominy,  death,  —  all  which  things  He  realized  as 
human  experiences,  are  as  nothing  to  the  original 
self-humiliation  in  taking  man's  form  in  order  that 
He  might  fully  share  man's  lot  and  so  make  man 
sharer  of  His  happiness.^  Such  was  the  training 
which  perfected  Him,  and  made  Prayer  in  His  hands 
a  Power  to  move  mountains. 

To  move  mountains  is  the  consummate  expression 
of  the  power  of  Prayer,  energizing  in  external  effect, 
as  distinguished  from  its  intrinsic  force.  It  is  de- 
^  Philippians,  ii,  5-8.  ^  Hebrews,  ii,  6-18. 


152         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

rived  from  a  well-known  incident  in  the  life  of  our 
Lord,  which  for  illustrative  purposes,  should  here  be 
quoted  in  full/ 

On  the  morrow,  when  they  were  come  out  of  Bethany, 
He  hungered.  And  seeing  a  fig  tree  afar  off  having  leaves. 
He  came,  if  haply  He  might  find  anything  thereon.  And 
when  He  came  to  it,  He  found  nothing  but  leaves,  for  it 
was  not  the  season  of  figs.  And  He  answered  and  said 
unto  it,  No  man  eat  fruit  from  thee  henceforward  for  ever. 
And  His  disciples  heard  it.  .  .  .  And  as  they  [again]  passed 
by  in  the  morning,  they  saw  the  fig  tree  withered  away  from 
the  roots.  And  Peter,  calling  to  remembrance,  saith  unto 
Him,  Rabbi,  behold,  the  fig  tree  which  Thou  cursedst  is 
withered  away.  And  Jesus  answering  saith  unto  them. 
Have  faith  in  God.  Verily,  I  say  unto  you,  whosoever 
shall  say  unto  this  mountain,  Be  thou  taken  up  and  cast 
into  the  sea;  and  shall  not  doubt  in  his  heart,  but  shall 
believe  that  what  he  saith  cometh  to  pass,  he  shall  have  it. 
Therefore  I  say  unto  you.  All  things  whatsoever  ye  pray 
and  ask  for,  believe  that  ye  receive  them  and  ye  shall  have 
them.^ 

We  assume  lightly  that  this  assurance  of  Christ's, 
coupled  with  the  condition  "Have  faith  in  God,'* 
is  applicable  to  such  power  of  prayer  as  we  possess 
in  the  immaturity  of  the  Christian's  life.  Having 
regard  to  man's  part  only,  setting  aside  that  for  ex- 
ceptional reasons  —  as  in  miracles  —  God  in  special 
instances  may  exert  power  through  means  otherwise 
inadequate,  this  assumption  is  much  as  if  one  should 
take  a  raw  youth  out  of  a  field,  set  him  to  pull  stroke 
oar  in  a  race,  and  be  sure  of  winning.  The  impreca- 
tion on  the  fig  tree,  which  illustrated  this  word  of 

*  St.  Mark,  xi,  12-14,  20-24.    St.  Matthew,  xxi,  18-22;  xvii,  20. 


INTERCOURSE  153 


our  Lord's,  took  place  at  the  end  of  His  course; 
and  the  word  is  not  so  much  a  general  assurance, 
as  a  specific  command  to  an  aspiration.  It  is  pri- 
marily a  command,  upon  which  the  promise  is  con- 
ditioned. It  presupposes  disciplined  energies  with 
a  constant  mind,  —  for  faith  is  enduring,  —  and  to 
such  it  assures  proportionate  results;  commensu- 
rate, it  is  true,  not  to  the  faith  itself,  but  to  that 
power  of  God  which  the  faith  should  evoke.  We 
have  caricatured  the  command  into  a  promise,  so 
loosely  conditioned  as  practically  to  assure  an  effect 
without  an  equal  cause.  Then,  being  disappointed, 
we  doubt. 

Consider,  too,  what  this  caricature  involves. 
The  promise,  —  to  move  mountains,  —  whether  con- 
strued literally  or  figuratively,  is  to  commit  to  man 
a  power  which  in  improper  handling  would  turn  the 
order  of  nature  upside  down.  That  man  is  capable 
of  receiving  such  power  is  shown  in  Jesus  Christ; 
and  also  is  suggested,  in  terms  of  human  thought, 
by  God's  care  to  exclude  man  from  the  tree  of  life,^ 
as  soon  as  he  had  parted  with  the  spirit  of  obedience. 
Imagination  quails  before  the  thought  of  the  wicked- 
ness of  man  expanded  by  enduring  life  and  ex- 
perience. But  in  Christ's  assurance  the  conditions 
are  such  as  to  insure  fitness  to  use  the  power.  Faith 
and  Prayer,  in  the  degree  demanded,  are  qualities 
which  guarantee  that  the  exercise  of  power  will  be 
only  in  conformity  with  God's  will.  Such  prayer 
God  needs.  It  is  part  of  His  provision,  inseparable 
from  the  gift  of  free  will,  by  which  He  can  accom- 
*  Genesis,  iii,  22-24. 


154         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

plish  through  man  that  which  apart  from  man  He 
will  not  —  by  His  own  Nature  cannot  —  otherwise 
effect.  At  the  opening  of  Christ's  ministry,  before 
any  miracle  by  Him  is  recorded,  His  course  in  the 
Temptation  demonstrates  Him  to  history  as  one 
fit  to  have  this  power  intrusted  to  Him;  He  refuses 
to  attempt  its  use  contrary  to  the  will  of  God,  read 
by  Him  in  the  Scriptures.^ 

It  is  clear  that  one  who  will  not  yield  on  such  a 
supreme  occasion,  under  the  solicitations  of  ex- 
treme bodily  want,  will  not  act  by  mere  caprice; 
and  the  instance  would  vindicate  as  reasonable  His 
action  in  the  withering  of  the  fig  tree,  could  no 
explanation  of  that  be  given.  This  seemingly 
wanton  exercise  of  power  receives  illustration,  and 
justification,  in  the  subsequent  washing  of  the  apos- 
tles' feet;^  an  incident  plainly  exceptional,  not  to 
be  expected,  and  to  them  at  the  moment  inexpli- 
cable, as  was  the  blighting  of  the  tree.  To  St. 
Peter's  remonstrance  He  replied,  "What  I  do  thou 
knowest  not  now,  but  thou  shalt  know";  and  when 
He  had  finished.  He  said,  "I  have  given  you  an  ex- 
ample; for  if  I,  whom  ye  rightly  call  Lord,  and 
Master,  have  washed  your  feet,  you  also  should  wash 
one  another's  feet."  The  act  was  an  example,  and 
an  illustration,  of  service  and  of  humihty;  and  in 
like  manner  the  unexpected  and  unaccountable  with- 
ering of  the  tree  is  by  Him  explained  as  an  illus- 
tration of  the  power  to  which    Faith  —  in   God  — 


*  St.  Matthew,  iv,  i-ii.     St.  Luke,  iv,  1-12. 
^  St.  John,  xiii,  1-15. 


INTERCOURSE  155 


is  capable  of  attaining.  In  neither  case  is  there 
caprice;  for  in  both  cases  there  is  purpose. 

The  demand  for  immediate  visible  results  to  a 
prayer  is  practically  desiring  to  walk  by  sight;  it  is 
the  negation  of  Faith,  the  fundamental  condition 
of  the  Life  of  the  Christian  and  of  successful  prayer. 
Thus  the  petition  is  poisoned  at  its  very  source.  Do 
then  the  promises  of  Jesus  Christ  fail  in  particulars 
upon  which  so  many  hopes  are  built  .^  No;  we  are 
not  here  in  the  presence  even  of  a  paradox,  much 
less  of  a  denial.  The  condition  stated.  Faith  in 
God,  necessarily  implies  a  complete  trust:  i,  that 
the  prayer  will  be  answered;  2,  that  it  will  be  an- 
swered for  the  suppliant's  best  good  as  God  knows 
it,  as  the  man  himself,  if  gifted  with  required  faith, 
would  ask,  did  he  also  so  know;  not  as  he  may  see 
and  word  it  in  a  request  ill-considered,  even  though 
honest  and  earnest.  A  prayer  contrary  to  the  will 
of  God  cannot  be  a  prayer  of  faith.  The  sons  of 
Zebedee  ask  that  they  may  sit,  the  one  on  Christ's 
right,  the  other  on  His  left,  in  His  Kingdom;^  a 
request  which  may  well  have  been  one  of  affection  as 
well  as  of  ambition.  The  reply.  Ye  know  not  what 
ye  ask,  is  applicable  to  many  prayers;  probably  to 
most.  If  a  son  ask  bread,  questions  our  Lord,  will 
his  father  give  him  a  stone  ?  ^  Yet  to  answer  a  prayer 
according  to  its  exact  terms  may  be  to  do  just  this. 

St.  Paul  in  his  first  letter  to  the  Corinthian  Chris- 
tians evidently  had  in  mind  our  Lord's  expression 
concerning  removing  mountains;^   it  was  part  of  his 

*  St.  Matthew,  xx,  20-23.     St.  Mark,  x,  35-40. 

^  St.  Matthew,  vii,  9,  10.  ^  i  Corinthians,  xiii,  2. 


156         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

mental  and  spiritual  possessions.  Yet  in  his  second 
letter,  speaking  of  his  personal  affliction/  for  deliver- 
ance from  which  he  prayed  thrice  (/'.  ^.,  a  perfect 
number  of  times,  earnestly  and  fervently),  he  re- 
cords the  denial  in  form  of  his  prayer,  vs^ithout  mis- 
giving that  it  had  failed.  "  My  grace  is  sufficient  for 
thee,  for  My  powder  is  made  perfect  in  v^eakness." 
The  prayer  is  answered;  but  to  faith  not  to  sight. 
Relief  is  given;  but  it  is  by  increasing  power  to  bear, 
not  by  removing  the  burden,  a  greater  result  in  any 
sound  estimate  of  benefit.  The  faith,  such  as  it  was 
in  the  prayer,  is  rewarded  by  an  increased  demand 
for  further  faith;  which  of  itself  indicates  an  original 
defect,  in  a  man  whose  faith  was  great  as  measured 
by  his  works  and  by  human  standards.  The  re- 
current expressions  of  St.  Paul  in  the  immediate 
connection  show  that  he  fully  appreciated  that  he 
had  received  more  than  he  asked.  In  his  prayer  he 
had  sought  and  found;  he  importuned,  knocked 
thrice,  and  it  was  opened  to  him.  He  sought  tem- 
poral relief,  goodly  pearls;  he  found  instead  one 
pearl  of  great  price.^  Then  he  appreciated  it,  sold 
all  else  and  bought  it.  His  expression  to  his  Philip- 
pian  converts,  "I  count  all  things  but  loss  for  the 
excellency  of  the  knowledge  of  Christ  Jesus  my 
Lord,  .  .  .  and  do  count  them  but  dung  that  I  may 
win  Christ,"^  takes  to  their  Corinthian  brethren  an  in- 
tenser  form.  Now,  "I  take  pleasure  in  weaknesses, 
in  injuries,  in  necessities,  in  persecutions,  in  dis- 
tresses,   for   Christ's   sake;     for  when   I    am   weak, 

^  2  Corinthians,  xii,  7-10.  ^  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  45,  46. 

^  Philippians,  iii,  7,  8. 


INTERCOURSE  157 


then  am  I  strong."  His  experience  in  the  instance 
illustrates  our  Lord's  word,  Every  branch  in  Me 
that  is  bearing  fruit  My  Father  purges,  that  it  may 
bring  forth  more  fruit. ^ 

Faith,  to  be  perfect,  —  to  remove  mountains,  — 
must  at  the  very  least  be  primarily  a  belief  and  trust 
in  God's  wisdom  and  His  goodness  to  man,  as  well 
as  in  His  power.  Christ's  condition  is :  Have  Faith 
in  God.  To  conceive  of  Faith  in  this  connection  as 
being  merely  an  intellectual  certainty,  a  confidence, 
in  virtue  of  which,  the  man  himself  exercising  it, 
the  mountain  would  remove  at  his  word,  would  be 
behef  in  self,  not  belief  in  God.  Faith  in  God, 
to  one  uncertain  of  what  the  will  of  God  in  the  par- 
ticular instance  may  be,  must  carry  not  only  belief 
in  His  power  to  remove  the  mount,  but  also  belief  in 
His  wisdom  and  goodness  in  controlling  action,  in 
case  it  would  be  unwise  or  unkind  to  grant  the 
prayer.  To  real  faith,  consequently,  no  petition  can 
be  unconditioned ;  and,  indeed,  adequate  realization 
of  the  danger  there  may  be  in  receiving  what  we  ask, 
in  ignorance  of  the  effects,  what  Johnson  well  called 
"the  secret  ambush  of  a  specious  prayer,"  would 
of  itself,  and  to  mere  human  prudence,  condition 
prayers. 

As  regards,  then,  prayer  being  effectual,  being 
answered,  the  assurance  of  Christ  is  precise,  the 
promise  undoubtful:  "Ask,  and  ye  shall  receive." 
But  receive  what .?  the  answer  your  need  requires, 
in  measure  as  you  have  that  only  real  Faith  which 
trusts  God's  wisdom  as  well  as  His  goodness.  When 
^  St.  John,  XV,  2. 


158         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

a  man  goes  to  a  physician,  he  expects  the  treatment 
required  by  his  physical  condition;  not  that  which 
his  softness  would  prefer,  or  his  prepossessions  im- 
agine. Thus  two  men  may  have  the  same,  let  us 
say,  trouble,  and  the  one  may  pray,  like  St.  Paul, 
for  deliverance;  the  other  not  pray.  It  would  be 
perfectly  consistent  with  God's  faithfulness  in  an- 
swering, that  he  who  asked  relief  should  not  be  freed 
from  his  infirmity,  because  it  is  charged  for  him 
with  spiritual  healing;  whereas  he  who  did  not  pray 
might  be  healed  of  a  disorder  which  fails,  and  in 
God's  foreknowledge  will  continue  to  fail,  of  the 
gracious  purpose  underlying  it.  God  does  not  will- 
ingly prolong  useless  chastening.^ 

Such  godly  reserve  applies,  of  course,  peculiarly  to 
those  petitions  for  temporal  betterment  which  the 
Prayer  Book  concisely  sums  up  in  the  words, 
"mind,  body,  and  estate."  In  respect  of  these,  the 
literal  performance  to  us  of  our  Lord's  assurance, 
"Ask  and  ye  shall  receive,"  assigning  in  every  case 
the  precise  thing  we  may  ignorantly  ask,  would  be 
the  substitution  of  our  wills  for  that  of  God,  aban- 
donment to  ourselves  by  Him,  the  withdrawal  of 
His  fatherly  care.  A  paradox  indeed;  the  utter 
negation  of  the  essence  of  Prayer,  which  is  an  inter- 
change involving  dependence  upon  and  protection 
by  a  Power  greater,  wiser,  and  more  loving  than 
ourselves.  Even  in  those  requests  of  which  we  can 
feel  more  assured  as  to  an  answer  in  terms,  in  prayers 
for  growth  in  character  and  holiness,  though  certain 
of  the  issue,  we  must  be  content  to  wait;  to  walk  here 
*  Isaiah,  i,  5.    Lamentations,  iii,  33. 


INTERCOURSE  159 


also  by  faith;  enduring,  as  seeing  that  which  long 
remains  almost  invisible;  yet  certain,  as  beholding 
the  Invisible  One  and  His  promise.^  Spiritual 
growths  know  their  winter  time,  as  well  as  their 
spring  and  harvest. 

All  reserves  made,  however,  Christ's  command 
remains,  and  its  promise:  Have  faith  in  God,  and 
results  commensurate  will  follow.  We  are  dealing 
with  realities,  however  much  we  need  to  guard 
against  facile  misapprehension.  The  command  is 
His,  therefore  obedience  is  possible.  We  can  ex- 
ercise a  certain  measure  of  faith,  habituating  our- 
selves to  an  attitude  of  mind,  which  tends  like  all 
habits  to  become  fixed  and  to  grow  upon  us;  to  be 
continually  operative,  unconsciously  as  weW  as  con- 
sciously. Putting  misgivings  quietly  aside,  we  can 
practise  the  confidence  that  what  we  ask  we  shall 
receive,  in  the  very  best  sense  possible  to  us;  the 
assurance  that  in  prayer  we  are  working  together 
with  God  to  the  fulfilment  of  His  purposes,  which 
are  always  those  of  love;^  that  to  this  end  God 
needs  us  as  really  as  He  needs  the  husbandman  for 
bringing  to  perfection  the  fruits  of  the  field.  This 
the  beheving  know;  and  they  know  also  that  powers, 
spiritual,  internal  and  external  to  them,  are  work- 
ing with  them :  the  unceasing  intercession  of  Jesus 
Christ,^  and  the  pleadings  of  the  Holy  Ghost.*  But 
we  do  not  know,  and  the  greater  our  faith  the  less 
we  will  be  impatient  to  know  prematurely,  —  to  see 

^  Hebrews,  xi,  i,  13,  27;  iii,  14.  ^  Romans,  viii,  28,  32. 

^  Hebrews,  ii,  17,  i8;  iv,  14-16;  vii,  25-28;  ix,  24.  Romans, 
viii,  34.  *  Ibid.y  viii,  26,  27. 


i6o         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

rather   than   to   trust,  —  the   manner   and   the   time 
which  God  has  put  in  His  own  power.^ 

This  combination  of  assurance  and  uncertainty, 
more  especially  as  to  relief  sought  from  the  pressure 
of  temporal  sorrows,  burdens,  perplexities,  has  been 
summed  up  in  lines  impressive  from  the  sobriety, 
quietness,  and  repressed  though  fervid  emotion, 
which  characterize  them.  They  are  by  the  celebrated 
Dr.  Johnson,  a  man  who  knew  intimately  dejection 
of  mind,  infirmity  of  body,  and  sore  poverty  of  estate, 
yet  kept  faith  in  God  and  love  to  man.  The  voice  is 
that  of  eighteenth  century  piety,  —  not  enthusiastic, 
nor  was  the  temperament  of  the  man,  —  but  the 
spirit  is  ageless.  The  calm  reasonableness  of  the 
past  is  as  cooHng  water  to  our  feverish,  doubting 
period : 

"Must  helpless  man,  in  ignorance  sedate, 
Roll  darkling  down  the  torrent  of  his  fate  ? 
Must  no  dislike,  alarm,  no  wishes,  rise. 
No  cries  invoke  the  mercies  of  the  skies .? 
Inquirer,  cease.      Petitions  yet  remain 
Which  Heaven  may  hear;  nor  deem  Religion  vain. 
Still  raise  for  good  the  supplicating  voice, 
But  leave  to  Heaven  the  measure  and  the  choice; 
Safe  in  His  power  whose  eyes  discern  afar 
The  secret  ambush  of  a  specious  prayer. 
Implore  His  aid,  in  His  decisions  rest. 
Secure,  whate'er  He  gives.  He  gives  the  best. 
Yet,  when  the  sense  of  sacred  presence  fires, 
And  strong  devotion  to  the  skies  aspires. 
Pour  forth  thy  fervours  for  a  healthful  mind, 
Obedient  passions,  and  a  will  resigned ; 

*  Acts,  i,  7. 


INTERCOURSE  i6i 


For  Love,  which  scarce  collective  man  can  fill ; 
For  Patience,  sovereign  o'er  transmuted  ill ; 
For  Faith,  that,  panting  for  a  happier  seat 
Counts  death  kind  Nature's  signal  of  retreat : 
These  goods  for  man  the  laws  of  Heaven  ordain. 
These  goods  He  grants  Who  grants  the  power  to  gain ; 
With  these  celestial  Wisdom  calms  the  mind. 
And  makes  the  happiness  she  does  not  find." 

While,  however,  we  may  not  ask  to  know  before- 
hand the  way  or  the  degree  of  God's  action,  —  what 
Johnson  calls  "the  measure  and  the  choice,"  —  nor 
to  see  results  follow  immediately,  we  will  fail  in  that 
habitual  attitude  of  assurance  which  we  are  com- 
manded to  cultivate,  if  we  neglect  continual  watchful- 
ness to  detect  the  workings  of  God's  hand,  —  the 
answers  to  prayer.  They  are  to  be  seen,  recognized, 
more  frequently  by  far  than  the  careless  imagine; 
obvious,  though  not  superficial.  In  nothing  perhaps 
is  the  lesson  of  the  Old  Testament  more  useful  to  us 
of  to-day,  unchanged  in  spirit  and  in  application, 
than  in  the  identification  it  makes  of  remissness  in 
this  respect  with  lack  of  faith ;  of  the  Faith  which  is 
Christ's  command  to  us,  the  Faith  which  carries  His 
promise.  All  things  which  to  the  Israelites  happened 
are  for  our  example;  but  their  crucial  failure  was 
in  not  noting  the  workings  of  God,^  and  their  conse- 
quent inability  to  believe.  Faith  is  compared  by 
Christ  to  a  grain  of  mustard  seed;  ^  the  characteristic 
of  which  is  not  only  its  smallness,  but  its  growth,  to 

^  Psalm,  xcv,  7-1 1.  Hebrews,  iii,  iv.  Exodus,  xxxii,  i,  7-10. 
Numbers,  xiv,  11,  12,  20-23. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xvii,  20.     St.  Luke,  xvii,  6. 

II 


1 62         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

a  size  of  which  that  smallness  in  itself  gives  no  prom- 
ise/ However  small,  Faith  carries  this  promise,  and 
it  is  the  potentiaHty  which  underlies  the  command: 
Have  Faith  —  in  God.  Though  never  so  little, 
Faith  can  grow;  therefore  to  cultivate  it  is  a  reason- 
able command  to  us,  and  the  promise  appHes  to  the 
growth  of  the  seed  till  it  reaches  the  measure  of  the 
stature  of  that  which  Christ  commanded. 

This  is  the  bridge  by  which  I  purpose  to  pass  from 
Prayer  to  its  correlative,  —  Thanksgiving.  Thanks- 
giving touches  the  past  and  present;  Prayer  looks 
chiefly  to  the  future,  though  in  the  present  both  find 
common  ground.  I  purpose  to  put  aside  the  recog- 
nized duty  of  gratitude,  just  because  it  is  recognized 
as  proper,  although  perhaps  less  common  in  us  than 
we  flatter  ourselves.  All  admit  that  benefit  received 
calls  for  thanks ;  to  God  no  less.  All  things  are  from 
God,  yes;  but  in  the  secondary  causes,  the  media 
through  which  they  reach  us,  we  usually,  as  a  race, 
lose  sight  of  Him.  He  is  not  in  this  matter  in  all  our 
thoughts.^  The  consequence  is  that  things  seem  to 
come  to  us  hy  a  series  of  incidents,  as  they  do  usually 
through  such  a  series.  These  carry  to  us  their  own 
explanation,  account  for  themselves  and  their  con- 
sequences; perfectly  natural,  as  we  say,  our  own 
work  or  that  of  some  one  else;  a  chain  of  causes,  no 
originating  cause  which  it  is  worth  while  to  trace. 
The  warning  to  the  Israelites,  Beware  lest  thou  say 
in  thine  heart,  my  power,  and  the  might  of  my  hand 
have  gotten  me  this  wealth ;  but  thou  shalt  remember 
that  Jehovah  thy  God  is  He  that  giveth  thee  power 

*  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  31,  32.  ^  Psalm,  x,  4-6  (Psalter). 


INTERCOURSE  163 


to  get  wealth/  may  have  been  particularly  addressed 
to  the  tendency  to  braggadocio  and  ostentation  com- 
mon to  primitive  societies;  but  spiritually  it  echoes 
the  v7ords  of  the  Christian  writer,  Take  heed  lest 
haply  there  shall  be  in  any  one  of  you  an  evil  heart 
of  unbelief,  in  departing  from  the  living  God.^  It  is 
a  rebuke  to  for getf nines s,  and  finds  its  complement 
in  the  other  caution  to  Israel,  Remember  that  thou 
wast  a  bondservant  in  Egypt,  and  that  Jehovah  thy 
God  brought  thee  out.^  Forgetfulness  and  unbelief 
are  twins. 

This  condition  is  not  so  much  ingratitude  in  a 
gross  sense,  as  it  is  inattention.  Between  the  two 
there  is  morally  little  to  choose,  and  the  result  is 
equally  disastrous.  How  thus  shall  man  have  "that 
due  sense  of  all  Thy  mercies,"  which  the  Church  holds 
forth  as  the  motive  to  thankfulness  ?  Human  impulse 
is  to  gratitude,  in  emotion  at  least,  if  not  in  enduring 
action.  Christ  assumes  this  in  the  words,  If  ye 
love  them  who  love  you,  or  do  good  to  them  who  do 
good  to  you,  what  do  ye  more  than  others  ?  ^  and 
again,  expressly,  "With  what  measure  ye  mete  it 
shall  be  measured  to  you  ";  "good  measure,  pressed 
down,  shaken  together,  running  over,  shall  men  give 
into  your  bosom."  ^  In  the  case  of  the  ten  lepers 
healed,^  He  expresses  surprise  that  but  one  returned 
to  Him  to  give  thanks.  It  would  seem  not  so  much 
that  the  nine  were  deficient  in  common  gratitude  as 

^  Deuteronomy,  viii,  11-18.  ^  Hebrews,  iii,  12,  13. 

^  Deuteronomy,  v,  15. 

*  St.  Matthew,  V,  46.     St.  Luke,  vi,  32-34. 

^  St.  Luke,  vi,  38.  ®  Ibid.,  xvii,  11-19. 


164         THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

that  they  failed  to  connect  Him  with  their  heahng, 
obvious  as  it  may  seem  to  have  been.  There  was 
deficiency  of  spiritual  perception,  which  is  Faith. 
Their  failure  suggests  thought  as  to  the  general  recog- 
nition of  our  Lord's  powers  by  those  who  benefited ; 
their  value  to  them  as  signs  of  His  Personality.  Some 
approached  appreciation;  the  mass  remained  blind, 
and  so  were  easily  moved  to  "Crucify  Him!" 
Though  He  had  done  so  many  miracles,  says  St. 
John,  yet  they  did  not  believe  on  Him.^ 

Failure  to  return  thanks  is  not  merely  an  indecency 
in  the  particular  instance.  It  is  evil  chiefly  in  the 
habit  of  mind  that  it  betrays,  which  continually 
fails  to  associate  efi^ect  with  cause,  the  ordering  of 
events  with  the  providence  of  God,  in  life  natural 
and  spiritual.  This  is  really  unbeHef,  in  action; 
negative,  perhaps,  rather  than  positive;  but  equally 
effectual  to  bad,  for  non-action  is  action.  Failure  to 
act  timely  is  as  disastrous  as  mistake.  Where  the 
habit  of  seeing  God's  hand  in  all  things  is  cultivated, 
not  only  will  the  ways  of  God,  the  connection  between 
prayer  and  answer,  be  evident  more  frequently,  — 
much  more  frequently,  —  but  thankfulness  will  be 
more  habitual  because  the  reasons  for  giving  thanks 
will  be  appreciated.  Faith  on  guard,  watchful,  makes 
advances  towards  perception.  With  such  habit,  see- 
ing God's  works,  we  shall  perceive  and  shall  know 
His  ways;  and  knowing.  Thankfulness  will  follow, 
for  it  is  in  accord  with  our  nature,  not  contrary  to 
it.  Thus  a  reciprocal  action,  essentially  Intercourse, 
will  be  estabhshed,  becoming  more  and  more  a 
*  St.  John,  xii,  37-41. 


INTERCOURSE  165 


frame  of  mind,  to  which   inadvertences  may  occur, 
yet  the  mental  and  moral  attitude  remain. 

The  unthankful  man  neglects  to  seek  God  behind 
the  secondary  causes  which  are  visible  to  him.  After 
the  event,  as  well  as  before,  he  walks  by  sight,  not 
by  faith.  A  man  finds  health  gradually  failing  and 
prays  for  restoration.  Days,  months,  perhaps  years 
pass,  of  slow  decline,  of  prayer  seemingly  unheeded; 
then  a  series  of  circumstances  undesigned  by  him 
leads  to  a  change  of  residence,  and  with  it  health 
revives  and  returns.  Does  he  in  this  see  an  answer .? 
Yet  it  is  open  to  belief,  and  a  living  faith  will  hold, 
that  the  happy  end  began  with  the  prayer.  Un- 
thankfulness  is  seen  not  only  where  the  particular 
ministration  comes  through  a  series  of  incidents, 
requiring  some  sustained  reflection  to  apprehend  and 
appreciate;  the  same  will  be  found  where  the 
relation  between  cause  and  effect  is  immediate  and 
direct.  A  sufferer  puts  himself  under  the  hands  of 
the  surgeon,  or  of  a  physician.  Does  he  see  in  them 
the  ministers  of  God,  waiting  continually  on  this 
very  thing  .?  ^  If  so,  the  mere  belief  is  prayer,  uttered 
or  unexpressed;  he  is  exercising  Faith,  and  beyond 
doubt  will  exercise  thankfulness.  If  he  does  not  so 
see,  where  is  his  faith  .?  Another  goes  to  heahng 
springs.  He  receives  the  benefit;  is  there  to  him  in 
the  waters  the  gift  of  God,  or  merely  a  natural 
agency  .?  If  the  latter,  he  walks  by  sight;  neither  by 
prayer  before  nor  by  thanks  after  will  he  hold  inter- 
course with  God,  and  so  will  have  lost  opportunity 
for  increase  in  that  knowledge  which  is  eternal  life. 
^  Romans,  xiii,  6. 


i66         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

To  him  the  secondary  cause  conceals  the  Primary. 
Such  appreciation  of  God's  working  ministers  power- 
fully to  knowledge;  none  the  less  sure,  but  surer, 
because  spiritual,  —  of  Faith.  Trust  beforehand  is 
the  correlative  of  Thankfulness  afterwards.  Both 
are  manifestations  of  Faith,  beholding  the  Invisible; 
and  both  involve  gains  of  experience,  issuing  in  the 
conviction  of  the  Psalmist  concerning  his  life  ex- 
perience :  They  that  know  Thy  Name  will  put  their 
trust  in  Thee;  for  Thou,  God,  hast  never  failed 
them  that  seek  Thee,^  —  a  consummate  expression 
of  Thankfulness. 

Experience  of  life  demands,  of  course,  time  for  ac- 
cumulating its  data;  but  there  need  be  no  delay  in 
cultivating  the  habit  of  observation,  nor  in  seeking 
the  gift  of  faith.  To  such  a  frame  of  mind,  each 
marked  incident  that  arises,  nay,  each  common  day 
that  passes,  becomes  an  occasion,  an  opportunity, 
not  only  to  serve  God  in  particulars,  but  to  observe 
where  He  is  serving  the  man,  is  dealing  with  him. 
This  resembles  the  watchful  eye  of  Science,  bent  on 
a  particular  investigation.  Habit  and  data  will 
increase  continually,  by  mutual  reaction.  And  what 
is  this,  after  all,  but  the  "Watch"  which  Jesus 
Christ  commands  ?  As  one  will  not  expect  to  see 
immediately,  or  always,  so  in  the  end  the  conviction 
will  not  be  of  the  precise  character  which  proceeds 
from  Sight,  in  its  proper  sphere  of  secondary  causes; 
but  it  will  be  equally  secure,  because  resting  upon 
the  God-given  faculty  of  Faith,  fortified  by  indica- 
tions of  cumulative  force,  the  stirrings  of  the  veil,  the 
*  Psalm,  ix,  lo  (Psalter). 


INTERCOURSE  167 


inevitable  inference  from  which,  to  the  believer,  is 
God  at  work.  Faith  here  will  never  cease  to  be 
Faith,  nor  yield  place  to  Sight;  but  its  increasing 
strength  will  supply  a  Rock  of  standing  which  Sight 
cannot  give.  Sight,  resting  on  things  seen,  has  in 
itself  nothing  beyond  on  which  to  repose;  whereas 
Faith  endures  as  beholding  the  Unseen,  which  is 
limitless  in  resource,  and  it  so  endures  because  it 
comes  from  the  Unseen  One  ^  as  well  as  seeks  Him 
in   all  things. 

Thus  there  is  truth  in  the  lines : 

"  In  each  event  of  life,  how  clear 
Thy  ruling  hand  I  see; 
Each  blessing  to  my  soul  more  dear 
Because  conferred  by  Thee." 

This  is  not  the  pretence  that  one  sees  clearly  at 
once  the  significance  of  each  event;  but  that  the 
habit  exists  of  recognizing  distinctly  that  each  is 
from  God ;  that  it  is  so  accepted ;  ^  and  that  the  mean- 
ing and  outcome  are  pondered  from  that  point  of 
view,  trusting  in  Christ's  assurance.  Seek  and  ye 
shall  find.  To  such  a  frame  Thankfulness  is  habitual. 

Thus  regarded,  each  life  may  be  to  the  individual 
a  revelation  of  God ;   and  like  the  general  Revelation 

^  Ephesians,  ii,  8.  St.  John,  vi,  44,  45.  These  words  of  Christ, 
"  No  man  can  come  to  Me  except  the  Father  draw  him,"  are  not 
to  be  understood  in  the  sense  that  the  Father  draws  some  and  not 
others.  They  mean  that  the  fact  of  a  man's  seeking  Christ  is  a 
sure  evidence  that  the  Father  is  drawing  ;  without  the  drawing  of 
the  Unseen  One  no  man  can  come.  But  He  draws  all;  though 
some  do  not  heed. 

^  Psalm,  cvii,  42,  43  (Psalter). 


1 68         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

which  we  call  the  Word  of  God,  the  message  of  the 
particular  life  to  its  owner  is  to  be  considered  in  its 
entirety,  as  well, as  in  specific  incidents,  or  striking 
events.  The  whole  justifies  the  parts,  as  the  parts 
help  interpret  the  whole.  The  particular  experience 
of  the  individual  will  reproduce  also  the  general  ex- 
perience of  the  race,  in  the  Bible;  progress,  alike  in  the 
knowledge  of  God  and  in  development  of  character, 
will  be  gradual.  To  the  race  and  to  the  man  there  is 
childhood,  and  there  is  maturity;  the  period  of  the 
Law  and  the  period  of  the  Gospel.  The  special  reve- 
lation may  be  so  conspicuous  as  to  serve  for  all  men, 
for  encouragement  and  understanding;  but  it  will, 
again  like  the  Bible  records,  be  conditioned  by  the 
character  of  the  recipient.  He  alone  can  fully  under- 
stand, for  the  dealings  have  been  personal  to  him, 
adapted  specifically  to  his  needs  and  his  power  to 
receive.  He  is  addressed  in  the  tongue  to  which  he 
was  born,  and  in  measure  as  he  improves  that  gift 
the  message  becomes  more  clear  and  the  understand- 
ing more  quick. ^  None  but  he  can  so  interpret  as  to 
enter  fully  into  the  causes  for  thankfulness;  it  be- 
longs to  no  other  to  question,  or  to  cavil  that  the  con- 
ditions have  not  called  for  gratitude.  Promises,  such 
as  "Prove  me  now  herewith,  if  I  will  not  open  the 
windows  of  Heaven  and  pour  you  out  a  blessing 
that  there  shall  not  be  room  enough  to  receive  it";  ^ 
or  our  Lord's,  "Seek  ye  first  the  Kingdom  of  God, 
and  His  righteousness;  and  all  these  things  shall  be 
added  unto  you,"  ^  are  of  a  happiness,  concerning  the 

^  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  12-16;  xxv,  28,  29.    St.  Mark,  iv,  25. 
^  Malachi,  iii,  10.  ^  St.  Matthew,  vi,  ^^. 


INTERCOURSE  169 


realizing  of  which  only  the  man  himself  can  judge. 
He  alone  can  know  that  he  is  happy,  and  why.  He 
may  assure  others,  he  may  so  seem  to  others;  he  can 
tell  them  of  his  experience,  but  he  cannot  transfer  it 
to  them.  As  the  heart  knoweth  its  own  bitterness, 
so  also  the  stranger  does  not  meddle  with  its  joy.^ 

Relatively  to  Thanksgiving,  as  here  dealt  with,  it 
is  apt  to  remark  that  the  experiences  of  life,  adverse 
as  well  as  fortunate,  if  appreciated  in  the  light  of  the 
teachings  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  so  used,  as  talents,^ 
possess  a  continuing  value  by  developing  spiritual 
character.  They  are  assimilated  and  made  permanent 
possessions,  which  will  endure  for  ever,  treasures 
in  heaven.^  Losses  here  thus  become  gains  there; 
and  gain  here  is  transferred  and  fixed  there.  But  if 
allowed  to  pass  out  of  mind,  unimproved  by  attention 
and  recollection,  experiences  sink  to  mere  earthly 
possessions,  put  away  out  of  remembrance,  where 
the  moth  and  rust  of  forgetfulness  consume  them. 
That  which  might  be  treasure  in  heaven  is  wasted 
even  as  treasure  on  earth. 

As  treated  under  the  four  heads.  Intercourse  with 
God  is  seen  to  have  two  sides,  passive  and  active. 
In  Association,  which  is  intercourse  prolonged,  man 
undergoes  quiescently  the  influence  always  attaching 
to  that  condition.  Receptivity  is  often  unconscious 
in  its  exercise.  But  on  the  other  hand,  to  maintain 
this  relation  in  full  force  effort  is  needed,  and  must 
be  exerted.  Such  effort  necessarily  takes  the  shape 
of    a  regulated  observance  of   times,  methods,  and 

^  Proverbs,  xiv,  10.  ^  St.  Matthew,  xxv,  14-30. 

^  Ibid.^  vi,  19-21.     St.  Luke,  xvi,  9. 


170         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

occasions,  and  will  acquire  inevitably  a  tendency  to 
repetition,  which  in  result  we  call  "formal."  This 
will  be  the  case  no  matter  how  spontaneous  a  custom, 
or  utterance,  may  be, or  how  personal  to  the  individual 
using  it.  If  an  expression  fills  a  spiritual  want,  it  will 
be  repeated  substantially  as  long  as  applicable.  So 
it  is,  doubtless,  that  liturgies  have  grown.  Thus 
originated,  a  form  becomes  like  the  framework  upon 
which  a  plant  climbs  upward;  it  does  not  hinder  the 
free  play  of  mind  and  heart  from  day  to  day,  as  cir- 
cumstances change,  or  moods  or  interest  alter,  but 
affords  support  and  guidance  in  moments  of  compara- 
tive weakness  or  perplexity. 

If  human  experience  of  centuries  needed  any  vindi- 
cation of  the  value  of  forms,  as  embodiments  of  life, 
perpetuating  its  existence  and  intensifying  its  influ- 
ence, the  above  consideration  would  justify  formal 
development;  whether  in  forms  of  words,  which  are 
apart  from  our  present  subject,  or  in  regulated  observ- 
ances. The  latter  demand  specific  notice  because  of 
their  bearing  upon  joint  worship,  whether  that  be 
Hturgical  or  extempore.  The  regulation  of  private 
devotion  in  this  respect  may  safely  be  left  to  the  ear- 
nestness of  the  individual,  evolving  his  personal 
methods  to  suit  his  personal  needs;  but  united  wor- 
ship, by  the  groups  which  constitute  social  and  reli- 
gious units,  requires  as  to  times  and  methods  an 
agreement,  which  is  a  form  in  the  same  manner  as 
any  methodized  action  is  formal. 

The  family  and  the  State  are  Divine  institutions 
in  the  secular  order,  in  so  far  as  a  logical  distinction 
may  be  drawn  between  secular  and  religious.     Such 


INTERCOURSE  171 


distinction  is  merely  logical,  for  convenience  of 
thought  in  considering,  and  of  language  in  discussing 
the  subjects  involved.  It  has  no  existence  in  fact; 
no  proper  human  institution  or  activity  is  only  secular, 
although  it  may  be  used  or  pursued  in  a  secular  spirit, 
a  spirit  that  knows  not  God.  In  the  religious  order 
the  congregation  and  the  Church,  however  specifically 
named  in  different  places,  or  from  differing  points  of 
view,  correspond  to  the  family  and  the  State.  As  the 
State  is  an  aggregation  of  families,  yet  has  its  own 
particular  organic  unity,  so  the  Church  is  an  aggre- 
gation of  congregations,  yet  has  a  life  of  its  own ;  a 
life  of  a  higher  order  than  that  of  the  State,  because 
it  is  the  embodiment  upon  earth  of  the  Life  of  Jesus 
Christ,  the  form  within  which  that  Life  is  shrined. 
The  churches  in  communion  with  the  Church  of 
England  define  the  Church  universal  as  "the  mysti- 
cal Body  of  Jesus  Christ,  which  is  the  blessed  com- 
pany of  all  faithful  people."  ^ 

Underlying  all  these  unities  is  the  individual  man, 
upon  whose  worth  each  vitally  depends.  Therefore 
the  treatment  of  the  elements  of  Worship,  which  in 
its  broad  sense  covers  every  act  of  Intercourse,  while 
properly  general,  addresses  itself  immediately  and 
directly  to  every  man  in  his  single  self;  much  as  the 
specific  gain  in  the  present  Constitution  of  the  United 
States  was,  that  it  brought  the  Central  State  which 
it  instituted,  the  National  Government,  into  direct 
administrative  touch  with  every  individual  citizen  in 
matters  essential  to  national  life.  So  nothing  stands 
between  God  and  the  man;  yet,  as  with  the  State 
^  Post  Communion  Prayer,  in  the  Communion  Office. 


172         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

in  its  functions,  upon  earth  the  Church  is  God's 
minister  attending  continually  upon  the  care  of  souls, 
and  it  is  our  Lord's  direction  that  he  who  within  the 
proper  sphere  of  the  Church  —  however  that  name 
be  interpreted  —  will  not  hear  her,  is  by  that  very 
act  separated  from  the  body  of  believers,  is  as  a 
heathen.^ 

The  responsibility  of  the  individual  therefore  can- 
not cease  with  himself.  His  own  personal  value, 
spiritually,  is  his  largest  contribution  to  the  welfare 
of  every  social  group  of  which  in  the  Providence  of 
God  he  finds  himself  a  member;  but  he  owes  also  a 
direct  participation  in  the  common  life  of  that  group, 
—  family,  state,  or  Church.  He  owes  participation 
specifically  in  those  matters  of  Intercourse  with 
God,  whereof  we  are  here  treating;  for  upon  Inter- 
course primarily,  particularly  in  the  two  Sacraments, 
depends  the  Life  of  the  Christian  and  of  the  Christian 
community.  The  giving  or  withholding  such  par- 
ticipation is  indeed  an  indication,  a  measure,  of  his 
personal  relation  to  God ;  for  as  the  personal  spiritual 
life  depends  on  such  intercourse,  —  in  Sacraments, 
in  Praise,  in  the  hearing  of  the  Word,  in  Prayer,  in 
Thanksgiving,  —  so  the  common  life  of  the  several 
communities  of  which  men  are  members,  depends 
upon  the  joining  together  in  such  intercourse.  From 
this  derives  the  duty  of  common  worship;  worship 
in  common;  worship  that  has  a  common  purpose, 
whatever  the  method  adopted.  This,  when  oppor- 
tunity exists,  or  can  be  made,  implies  worship 
together,  assembled,  in  church  or  family;    because 

^  St.  Matthew,  xviii,  17,  18.     St.  Luke,  x,  16. 


INTERCOURSE  173 


such  is  a  more  perfect  form  of  common  action  than 
separate  worship,  however  accordant  in  spirit  that 
may  be. 

Such  gatherings  for  worship  should  not  be  looked 
upon  as  a  mere  aggregation,  congregation,  of  indi- 
viduals, such  as  in  other  spheres  of  human  activity 
is  called  a  mass  meeting.  The  usefulness  of  even 
such  methods  in  men's  experience  is  shown  by  the 
continued  employment  of  them;  and  all  have  had 
occasion  to  know  personally  the  effect  of  a  multi- 
tude upon  human  action,  as  well  as  other  practical 
results  following  the  assembling  of  a  number  of 
persons  animated  by  a  common  spirit,  or  seeking  to 
further  a  common  object.  This  alone  would  not 
only  justify  but  render  imperative  Christian  gather- 
ings, bound  as  Christians  are  to  utilize  every  suitable 
means  to  promote  the  knowledge  of  God  and  of 
Christ,  and  reverence  towards  Him.  But  Christians 
assembled  for  such  objects  are  more  than  a  mass 
meeting.  The  Life  of  the  Christian  is  the  life  of 
a  member  of  an  organic  body,  which  has  a  life  of 
its  own  distinct  from  and  superior  to  the  aggregate 
Hves  and  wills  of  its  m.embers.^  The  life  of  the  Body 
is  not  separate  from  that  of  the  members,  but  it  is 
distinct.  It  will  continue  though  any  one  of  them 
dies ;  yet,  though  thus  independent,  the  maintenance 
of  this  life  in  full  vigor  requires,  like  the  other  pur- 
poses of  God,  the  active  cooperation  of  men  who 
are  the  members  of  the  body.  He  who  withholds 
prayers  due  to  others  injures  each,  and  in  each  all. 

^  Romans,   xii,   4-8.      I    Corinthians,    xii,    12-27.      Compare 
St.  John,  XV,  1-7.     Colossians,  ii,  19, 


174         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

In  each  instance  he  injures  also  Christ.^  Thus 
St.  Paul  says,  If  one  member  suffer  all  the  members 
suffer  with  it;  and  he  speaks  of  Christians  indiffer- 
ently as  members  of  Christ,  or  members  of  the  Church, 
because  the  latter  is  His  representative  on  earth,  His 
minister,  and  yet  more  emphatically  His  Body,  the 
body  of  which  He  is  the  Head.^ 

In  deciding  to  forsake  public  worship,  therefore, 
or  even  in  careless  neglect  of  a  due  observance  of  it, 
a  man  decides  deliberately  to  neglect  part  of  the 
duty  laid  upon  him  by  God  and  by  Christ,  and  in 
so  far  to  inflict  injury  upon  the  Body,  by  withhold- 
ing his  share  in  maintaining  the  organic  life.  This 
is  a  treason,  a  betrayal  of  our  common  humanity; 
for  it  not  only  injures  the  Body  itself,  but  by  en- 
feebhng  life  renders  it  less  able  to  the  purposes  of 
God  in  the  redemption  of  the  world,  of  which  the 
Church  is  the  appointed  instrument.^  Of  that  Hfe 
there  are  several  attributes;  but  the  chief  essential, 
the  one  great  indispensable  condition,  is  the  main- 
tenance of  union  with  God  in  Christ,  by  Intercourse 
with  Him;  not  by  the  several  actions  of  many  wills, 
but  by  their  joint  action  in  the  one  Body.  As  our 
Lord  says  in  His  last  Prayer,  covering  all  believers 
in  all  ages :  Neither  do  I  pray  for  these  alone,  but 
for  them  also  that  believe  on  Me  through  their 
word;  that  they  all  may  be  one,  as  Thou,  Father, 
art  in  Me  and  I  in  Thee;  that  they  may  be  one,  even 
as  We  are  One.     I  in  them,  and  Thou  in  Me,  that 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxv,  40,  45. 

^  Ephesians,  i,  22,  23;  iv,  11-16;  v,  24-32.  Colossians,  i,  18, 
24;  ii,  19.  ^  St.  Matthew,  xxviii,  19,  20.     Acts,  i,  8. 


INTERCOURSE  175 


they  may  be  perfected  into  one.^  Public  Worship  is 
the  manifestation  and  utilization  of  this  oneness. 

The  perfect  Intercourse  with  God  therefore  tran- 
scends that  which  is  possible  to  the  individual.  It 
is  found  only  in  the  whole  Body  of  believers,  per- 
fected into  a  unity  which  our  Lord  parallels  with 
that  of  the  Godhead,  and  ascribes  to  the  indwelling 
of  God  through  Christ.  That  the  powers  of  such 
a  unity  exceed  in  effect  as  in  glory  anything  attain- 
able by  the  single  Christian  would  be  apparent,  were 
the  conception  merely  human,  derived  from  human 
analogies,  instead  of  being  the  affirmation  of  Christ.^ 
The  man  who  wilfully  neglects  public  worship  offends 
against  the  Body  of  Christ;  but  he  also  in  measure 
offends  who,  while  attending,  falls  willingly  short 
of  the  purpose  to  make  his  part  in  such  worship 
organic,  that  of  a  member,  and  not  separate.  "I" 
must  be  sunk  in  "We";  and  "We"  must  be  con- 
ceived as  not  many,  but  one.^ 

To  this  end  those  accustomed  to  liturgic  worship 
should  exercise  care  to  comprehend  fully  the  meanings 
of  a  common  prayer,  praise,  or  thanksgiving.  A 
man's  private  prayers,  if  the  outcome  of  religious 
earnestness,  will  be  understood  by  himself;  but  in 
united  worship  understanding  is  essential  to  perfect 
participation.  Thus  St.  Paul  says,  alluding  specific- 
ally to  Christian  assemblies,  I  will  pray  with  the 
spirit,  but  I  will  pray  with  the  understanding  also.* 
Those  who  use  liturgic  forms  will  doubtless  profit 

^  St.  John,  xvii,  20-23.  ^  St.  Matthew,  xviii,  19,  20. 

^  Romans,  xii,  5.     I  Corinthians,  x,  17;   xii,  12,  27. 

*  Ihid.,  xiv,  12-15. 


176         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

in  measure  by  the  mere  association  with  them, 
being  as  they  are  a  manifestation  of  the  growth  of 
the  Body,  the  Church,  an  outcome  of  her  organic 
hfe  through  ages  of  piety.  The  association  is  with 
God  as  revealed  to  generations  of  suffering  and 
worshipping  men  and  women.  But  here  again  In- 
tercourse must  be  active  as  well  as  passive.  Effort 
is  needed  to  perfect  comprehension,  and  thereby 
participation.    Study  is  requisite. 

Such  shades  of  meaning  as  between  "acknowledge 
and  confess,"  "dissemble  and  cloak,"  "erred  and 
strayed,"  "devices  and  desires,"  "declare  and  pro- 
nounce," "confirm  and  strengthen,"  in  the  Anglican 
liturgy,  are  worthy  to  exercise  the  attention;  which 
also  should  not  allow  to  pass  unnoted  such  an  ex- 
pression as  "promises  declared  unto  mankind  in 
[not  merely  by]  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord."  Psalms 
of  daily  repetition,  like  the  Venite,^  possess  an  or- 
dered sequence  of  thought,  a  unity  of  conception, 
which  should  be  mastered,  if  worship  is  to  be  intelli- 
gent. Others  have  special  associations  which  throw 
light  on  their  meaning,  or  enhance  their  appeal  to 
the  consciousness;  as  does  the  Venite  in  its  un- 
mutilated  form.  When  "I"  occurs,  as  in  the  last 
verse  of  the  Te  Deum,  and  continually  in  the  Psalms, 
it  quickens  sympathy  as  well  as  perception,  feeling 
as  well  as  intellect,  to  hear  in  it,  and  one's  self  to 
express,  the  emotion  or  the  prayer  or  the  praise  of 
the  Church,  the  "I"  which  Jesus  Christ  has  both 
instituted  and  constituted  upon  earth,  as  His  repre- 
sentative. So  also  in  the  prayers  for  all  who  are 
^  Psalm,  xcv. 


INTERCOURSE  177 


afflicted,  "in  mind,  body,  or  estate";  all  those  who 
are  "in  trouble,  sorrow,  need,  sickness,  or  any  other 
adversity";  in  the  petitions  of  the  Litany;  w^hile 
one  would  not  indeed  exclude  remembrance  of  par- 
ticular cases  known  to  the  worshipper,  it  is  better 
as  a  rule  to  dwell  upon  the  "all,"  and  upon  the  mean- 
ing of  each  of  those  enumerated  trials;  for  the  "all" 
are  the  Body  of  Christ  and  members  in  particular.^ 
In  truth  there  is  scarcely  one  of  these  ills  that  does 
not  apply  spiritually  to  the  Church  herself  while 
militant  here  on  earth;  though  she  certainly  is  not 
the  primary  subject  of  the  requests. 

Worship  by  separate  congregations  is  a  necessary 
incident  in  the  practice  of  the  Church,  which  by  her 
Founder's  purpose  is  co-extensive  with  the  world; 
but,  if  exceptional  and  rare  mention  of  the  congre- 
gation in  liturgical  forms  may  be  taken  to  indicate 
the  mind  of  the  Church,  each  congregation  is  to  her 
only  a  subordinate  part  of  a  whole,  and  should  wor- 
ship understandingly,  with  a  conscious  sense,  be- 
yond itself,  of  union  with  the  Church  Universal. 
Each  member  prays,  gives  thanks,  and  hears,  with 
and  for  those  present,  not  for  himself  or  herself 
chiefly;  but  over  and  beyond  those  immediate  sur- 
roundings stretches  the  long  vista  of  all  those  "that 
in  every  place  call  upon  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  their  Lord  and  ours."  ^  Of  the  greatness  of 
this  thought,  of  its  inspiring  effect,  of  its  happy 
influence  in  broadening  influence  and  sympathies, 
there  can  be  no  doubt;  as  there  can  be  none  of  its 
truth,  nor  of  its  bearing  upon  Worship  as  acceptable 

^  I  Corinthians,  xii,  27.  ^  Ihid.^  i,  2. 


178         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

with  God.  The  imagination  which  apprehends 
this  is  certainly  aided  in  expression  by  common 
forms  of  words,  which  testify  to  identity  as  well  as 
to  community  of  praise  and  prayer.  There  is  an 
immense  uplift  in  the  realization  that  as  East  pursues 
West,  till  it  returns  to  its  place  again,  everywhere  it 
finds  one  continuous  voice  rising  from  thousands 
and  ten  thousands  in  unison  of  word  as  of  spirit. 

Between  this  ultimate  comprehensive  conception 
of  worship,  this  supreme  reality,  and  its  lesser  man- 
ifestations, there  is  no  conflict;  as  there  is  none 
between  duty  to  God  and  duty  to  man.  Every  minor 
obligation,  to  individuals,  is  comprehended  in  that 
which  we  owe  to  God.  Love  to  Him  does  not  exclude 
other  loves;  on  the  contrary  it  invests  them  with  a 
double  claim.  It  excludes  only  their  rivalry  with 
Him.  Among  the  whole  body  of  Christians,  the 
congregation  and  the  family  are  the  nearest  neigh- 
bors to  each  one.  They  may  be  dearer,  as  one 
Apostle  was  especially  dear  to  Christ;  ^  and  they 
should  be.  Their  nearness  sanctions  their  call  for 
particular  affection.  It  is  only  when  that  particular 
affection  rivals  and  sinks  the  greater  reality,  of  the 
whole  Church,  that  it  becomes  evil.  There  is  no 
contradiction  between  them;  they  supplement  each 
other. 

Especially  may  this  be  so  in  smaller  congregations, 
of  the  family.  The  family  has  this  over  the  con- 
gregation, that  it  is  a  natural  unit,  constituted  by 
God  directly;  whereas  the  congregation  is  artificial, 
though  necessary.  The  family  has  a  hfe  of  its  own, 
^  St.  John,  xiii,  23;  xix,  26;  xx,  2;  xxi,  20. 


INTERCOURSE  179 


a  composite  being,  distinct  from  the  aggregate  lives 
of  the  several  members;  and  that  life  demands  both 
consecration  and  help  from  above.  It  must  be  sus- 
tained by  Intercourse  w^ith  God;  and  in  no  wise  can 
this  be  accomplished  so  effectually  as  by  associating 
the  v^orship  of  the  family  v^ith  that  of  the  Universal 
Church,  bringing  each  to  the  support  of  the  other. 
This  is  not  difficult  to  do  v^hen  the  conception  of  the 
unity  of  the  vyrhole  Church  has  been  assimilated  as 
well  as  realized;  has  passed  beyond  simple  intellec- 
tual acceptance  and  become  a  habit  of  the  family 
thought.  It  will  be  aided  certainly  by  forms  of  wor- 
ship, when  those  are  accepted  and  used  in  the  spirit 
which  belongs  to  them  and  in  which  they  had  their 
origin;  that  of  the  unity  of  Christians,  formulated 
into  oneness  of  expression  and  developed  through 
ages  of  practical  use. 

It  is  said  that  family  worship  has  fallen  into 
disuse,  and  continues  to  fall.  The  weighty  signifi- 
cance of  this  is  that  the  family  as  such  has  surrendered 
Intercourse  with  God;  has  with  Him  no  associa- 
tion other  than  the  unrelated  efforts  of  its  several 
members.  Without  pronouncing  on  the  vahdity 
of  difficulties  imposed  by  the  press  and  racket  of 
these  days,  as  compared  with  those  of  the  past, 
one  thing  may  be  affirmed.  The  difficulty  is  not 
one  of  time,  but  of  family  punctuality.  It  is  certain 
that  the  essentials  of  common  Worship  can  be  had, 
without  precipitancy,  with  all  punctiliousness  of 
observance,  within  five  minutes  by  the  clock.  The 
reading  of  so  much  as  constitutes  most  of  the  Psalms, 
or  one  of  the  "Epistles,"  or  "Gospels,"  of  the  Eng- 


i8o         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

lish  Church;  the  ascription  of  praise  in  the  Gloria 
Patri;  the  recitation  of  the  Creed;  the  offering  of 
prayer  to  the  extent  of  the  Lord's  Prayer  and  of 
four  or  five  of  the  Collects  in  the  Morning  and 
Evening  services,  or  those  for  special  Sundays  and 
holy  days,  can  all  be  accomplished  thoughtfully  and 
reverently  within  the  time  named;  and  such  a  pro- 
cedure not  only  provides  all  the  forms  of  Intercourse, 
but  represents  every  decisive  feature  of  the  morning 
and  evening  common  worship  of  the  Church,  as  by 
herself  regulated.  The  morning  Collect  for  Grace 
summarizes  concisely  and  pointedly  every  inter- 
cession for  one  another  that  the  Church  as  a  whole, 
or  the  several  subdivisions,  could  possibly  desire. 
It  brings  all  to  the  support  of  each,  and  each  to  the 
support  of  all,  with  the  full  power  resident  in  the 
whole  Body,  starting  every  member  with  its  bene- 
diction upon  his  day's  work. 

The  habit  of  thought  which  fails  to  seize  and 
hold  fast  these  great  realities  of  the  common  life  is 
puny  and  narrow.  However  men  severally  may 
regard  imperialism  as  a  political  theory,  the  dominion 
of  Christ  is  essentially  imperial,  one  Sovereign  over 
many  communities,  who  find  their  oneness  in  Him, 
their  Ruler.^  One  Head;  one  Body,  corporate  and 
organized;  many  members,  all  together  one,  but 
without  loss  of  personal  characteristics.  The  power 
of  the  whole,  which  is  the  Power  of  Jesus  Christ,  is 
at  the  service  of  each,  and  each  in  turn  serves  the 
whole;    but  to   this   mutual   service   accord   of  will 

^  Galatians,  iii,  28.  Colossians,  iii,  11.  Revelation,  v,  6-14; 
vii,  9. 


INTERCOURSE  i8i 


and  of  endeavor,  unity  of  spirit  and  of  effort,  are 
imperative,  —  not  only  essential,  but  commanded. 
This  is  not  merely  a  great  conception,  a  great  ideal; 
it  is  a  practical  reality,  the  existence  among  us  of  an 
unmeasured  Power,  the  scope  of  which  is  purely 
spiritual  and  benevolent,  co-extensive  with  all  men, 
but  which,  like  other  purposes  of  God,  requires  the 
cooperation  of  man.  Such  cooperation  must  be 
maimed  and  defective,  so  far  as  it  fails  in  understand- 
ing; and  it  so  fails,  by  so  much  as  each  man  fails 
to  appreciate  the  importance  of  the  whole  to  him, 
and  of  himself  to  the  whole.  His  importance  is 
twofold :  what  he  spiritually  is,  —  his  character,  — 
and  what  he  does ;  and  the  greatest  —  not  the  only  — 
thing  he  can  do  is  embraced  in  the  common  worship. 
"Lift  up  your  hearts,"  God's  appeal  through  the 
priest,  is  an  exhortation  peculiarly  applicable  here; 
and  the  response,  "We  Hft  them  up,  —  unto  the 
Lord,''  summarizes  that  Intercourse  with  Him  which 
by  perpetual  renewal  sustains  the  life  of  the  Body 
and  of  the  members. 


CHAPTER  IV 

FULFILMENT 

LIFE,  spiritual  and  natural,  is  a  means  to  an 
end.  Its  purpose  and  justification  is  the  pro- 
duction of  results.  This  our  Lord  calls  fruit, 
and  indicates  as  at  once  the  object  of  spiritual  hfe, 
and  the  test  of  its  reality.  "  I  chose  you  and  appointed 
you,  that  ye  should  go  and  bear  fruit,  and  that  your 
fruit  should  abide.  Every  branch  in  Me  that 
beareth  fruit  my  Father  purgeth,  that  it  may  bring 
forth  more  fruit;  and  every  branch  In  Me  that 
beareth  not  fruit.  He  taketh  away.  Herein  Is  My 
Father  glorified  that  ye  bear  much  fruit;  and  so  shall 
ye  be  My  disciples."  ^  "  By  their  fruits  ye  shall  knovs^ 
them."  ^  These  are  the  underlying  thoughts  in  the 
parable  of  the  barren  fig  tree,^  v^hlch  did  not  justify 
its  life  by  yielding  fruit. 

The  bearing  of  fruit  in  due  season,  and  in  degree 
proportionate  to  the  abilities  of  the  believer,  is  there- 
fore the  design  and  the  fulfilment  of  the  Life  of 
the  Christian;  its  aim  and  Its  end.  It  is  necessary, 
however,  carefully  to  keep  in  mind  the  distinction 
between  the  life  Itself  and  the  fruit.  Intimately  as- 
sociated though  these  are,  in  the  relation  of  cause  and 

^  St.  John,  XV,  2,  8,  i6. 

2  St.  Matthew,  vii,  16-20;  xii,  33.  St.  Luke,  vi,  43-45-  St. 
James,  ii,  18;  iii,  11,  12.  ^  St.  Luke,  xiii,  6-9. 

i8z 


FULFILMENT  183 

effect,  they  are  distinct;  yet  being  not  separate,  but 
closely  connected,  the  mistake  of  confusing  one  with 
the  other  is  easily  made.  Nothing  is  more  common, 
or  more  misleading,  than  to  regard  activities  —  a 
fruit  in  which  the  Hfe  naturally  manifests  itself —  as 
being  themselves  the  Hfe.  At  best,  this  they  are  not; 
they  may  be  evidences  of  life,  but  they  themselves  are 
not  Hfe ;  while  at  worst  this  misapprehension  may  go 
so  far  as  to  see  in  outward  actions,  religious  or  benev- 
olent, a  substitute  for  the  Hfe  itself 

This  error  is  fundamental,  radical;  and  it  is  also 
frequent,  confined  to  no  class  or  age.  We  of  the 
present  day  are  pretty  well  awake  to  the  specious 
misapprehension  that  the  spiritual  Hfe  consists  in 
religious  observances,  such  as  churchgoing,  and 
various  other  necessary  devotional  practices.  We 
have  seen  that  these  may  receive  extensive  and  strict 
attention,  and  yet  be  unaccompanied  by  those  inner 
graces  of  character  which  St.  Paul  caHs  the  fruit  of 
the  Spirit :  Love,  joy,  peace,  longsuffering,  gentleness, 
goodness,  faithfulness,  meekness,  self-control.^  This, 
a  snare  to  other  times,  and  still  to  some  types  of 
religious  disposition,  is  now  so  clear  to  us  that  a 
tendency  has  been  induced  to  discard  these  obser- 
vances, and  to  fly  to  the  other  extreme,  —  to  treat 
them  as  indifferent;  whereas  in  themselves  they  are 
good  and  even  imperative,  and  therefore  must 
surely  characterize  a  conduct  that  has  its  source  in 
living  piety  —  fiHal  duty  to  God. 

This  distortion  of  view  is  perhaps  partly  responsible 
for  the  particular  direction  our  own  age  has  given  to 
^  Galatians,  v,  22. 


184         THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

religious  observance;  for  by  observance  of  some  kind 
the  religious  instinct  will  try  to  satisfy  conscience, 
v^ill  try  to  find  a  substitute  for  the  life  itself.  The 
religious  and  benevolent  activities,  and  organiza- 
tions, styled  "institutional," may  degenerate  into  mere 
outward  observance,  as  readily  as  devotional  exer- 
cises. Like  these,  they  may  serve  to  deaden  men's 
appreciation  that  in  themselves  they  are  at  best  fruit; 
V7hile  at  worst  they  may  deceive  fatally  by  taking 
upon  themselves  the  semblance  of  spiritual  life. 
There  can  be  as  much  self-deception  in  running 
round  from  hospital  to  settlement,  from  meeting  to 
meeting,  as  from  preacher  to  preacher,  and  service 
to  service.  The  one  course  as  the  other  may  be  the 
outward  visible  sign  of  vigorous  spiritual  life,  and 
profound  spiritual  interest;  but  it  also  may  not, 
and  it  runs  the  danger  of  self-deception,  because  it 
can  proceed  from  other  causes,  may  be  only  the  reflec- 
tion of  the  prevailing  spirit  of  the  times,  or  of  a  natu- 
ral restlessness,  or  a  sop  to  conscience  for  deficiencies 
somewhere.  The  Angel  of  the  Church  at  Ephesus 
is  not  the  only  instance  of  one  abounding  in  works 
and  fallen  from  love.^ 

It  is  against  this  specific  danger,  very  real  to-day, 
that  St.  Paul  directed  his  well  known  characteriza- 
tion of  Love,^  which  is  not  only  a  eulogium  of  the 
virtue  in  itself,  but  a  stern  warning  that  the  most 
strenuous  and  even  self-sacrificing  outward  actions 
cannot  be  accepted  as  a  substitute  for  the  inner  con- 
dition of  Love.  Benevolent  activities  (I  do  not  say 
action)   are  as  absent  from  his  enumeration  of  the 

^  Revelation,  ii,  1-5.  .  ^  i  Corinthians,  xiii. 


FULFILMENT  185 


features  of  Love  as  are  forms  of  pious  observance. 
The  end  of  the  commandment,  as  he  says  in  another 
place  and  connection,   is  Love,^  —  not  deeds;    not 
that  doing  is  less  than  imperative,  but  where  love  is, 
it  bears  its  own  assurance  of  being  the  fruit  of  the 
Spirit.     There  is  hfe;    and  where  hfe  is,  deeds  will 
follow,  as  the  night  the  day.    And  so  the  Apostle  con- 
cludes. Love  is  the  fulfilling  of  the  Law;  he  that  loves 
has  already  fulfilled  the  law.^    This  is  a  re-statement 
of  the  words  of  Jesus  Christ:   Whatsoever  ye  would 
that  men  should  do  to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them; 
for  this  is  the  Law  —  and  the  Prophets.^    So  to  do  in 
all  things  is  only  possible  to  Love;    for  the  applica- 
tion of  this  teaching  is  not  to  particular  set  activities, 
usually  self-chosen  by  natural  predisposition,  but  to 
the  daily,  contrary,  and  often  unforeseen,  incidents 
of  common  life,  the  sole  sure  provision  against  which 
is  the  habitual  inner  temper  of  the  mind. 

The  tokens  of  Fulfilment  in  the  Life  of  the  Christian 
are  therefore  to  be  sought  within:  in  dispositions, 
the  first  result  of  which  is  to  modify  character  and 
temperament,  and  through  these  to  manifest  the 
secondary  results  of  conduct  and  activities.  This 
constitutes  a  series  of  causes  and  effects ;  the  first 
cause  being  the  Life  of  Jesus  Christ  dwelling  in  His 
follower,  as  the  life  of  a  vine  in  its  several  branches. 
The  special  characteristics  of  His  Life  — Love,  Joy, 
Peace  — will  thus  be  reproduced  in  measure  in  that 

1  I  Timothy,  i,  5,  6. 

2  Romans,  xiii,  8-10.     Galatians,  v,  13,  14. 

I  3  St.  Matthew,  vii,  12.     St.  John,  xiii,  34,  35- 

*  Ibid.,  XV,  4-6. 


1 86         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

of  the  Christian,  and  will  increase  by  growth  as  all 
life  does.  These  are  matters  of  character  and  tem- 
perament; qualities  which  we  do  not  need  revelation 
to  tell  us  manifest  themselves  in  conduct,  which  is  a 
very  different  thing  from  activities. 

Fulfilment  is  itself  a  life  process,  one  of  continuous 
growth.  It  is  an  interior  condition,  progressive, 
caused  by  the  Power  that  dwelleth  in  the  Christian, 
inducing  likeness  to  God,  confirmed  and  strengthened 
by  association  with  Him,  which  is  intercourse  sus- 
tained. This  process  in  all  its  stages,  beginning, 
continuance,  and  completion,  is  what  we  call  super- 
natural. That  is,  it  is  the  result  of,  derives  from,  and 
is  perpetually  maintained  by,  a  Life  higher  than  the 
natural  life  which  all  men  have  in  common ;  which 
they  derive  through,  though  not  from  their  parents; 
and  which,  once  received,  is  independent  of  those 
through  whom  it  is  imparted.  The  Life  of  the 
Christian  is  born  of  the  Spirit;  ^  the  children  of  God, 
those  who  believe  in  the  Name  of  Jesus  Christ,  are 
born  not  of  blood,  nor  of  the  will  of  the  flesh,  nor  of 
the  will  of  man,  but  of  God.^  That  which  is  born  of 
the  flesh  is  flesh,  and  that  which  is  born  of  the  Spirit 
is  spirit.^  The  growth  from  this  new  birth,  of  the 
Spirit,  is  Fulfilment  of  Life. 

Common  experience  teaches  us  how  much  conduct 
depends  upon  temperament,  upon  that  natural  life, 
the  particular  characteristics  of  which  in  each  individ- 
ual are  shown  by  his  moods,  his  actions,  the  general 
tenor  of  his  way.     Activities,  doing  things,  are  to  a 

^  St.  John,  in,  3-8.  i  St.  Peter,  i,  23.  Collate  St.  John,  xv,  4, 
with  2  Corinthians,  v,  17.  ^  St.  John,  i,  12,  13. 


FULFILMENT  187 

much  greater  extent  independent  of  natural  con- 
stitution; a  man  governed  by  various  impulses  of 
necessity,  or  benevolence,  or  interest,  can  more  or 
less  force  himself  to  the  performance  of  a  task  which 
he  has  set  himself,  or  finds  laid  upon  him.  It  is  much 
more  difficult  to  regulate  conduct,  which  is  the  out- 
ward sign  of  inward  dispositions,  native  or  acquired. 
The  reason  for  this  difference  probably  is  that  the 
activities  —  the  task  work  —  are  occasional,  inter- 
mittent, and  in  large  measure  even  mechanical,  or 
at  least  routine;  whereas  conduct  is  coincident  with 
every  moment  of  conscious  Hfe,  and,  if  controlled,  is 
continuous  effort  under  very  varying  circumstances. 

If  this  be  true,  it  is  almost  self-evident  that  human 
watchfulness  is  unequal  to  the  sustained  strain  of 
guarding  every  instant  each  action;  and  that  the 
desired  result  of  conforming  every  act  to  the  highest 
standard  can  be  reached  only  when  the  inner  spirit 
itself  is  so  transformed,^  for  then  its  outward  mani- 
festation will  correspond  without  effort.  It  is,  of 
course,  possible  to  control  conduct,  active  or  passive, 
to  a  certain  extent,  or  at  times.  We  all  have  experi- 
ence, in  ourselves  and  in  others,  of  subduing  the 
natural  impulse;  of  particular  actions  which  are  not 
the  expression,  but  the  suppression,  of  the  inward 
feeling  or  mood.  But  we  also  know  what  a  labor  this 
involves,  where  the  permanent  natural  disposition  is 
contrary ;  or  where  the  opposition  proceeds  from  those 
temporary  conditions  we  call  moods,  which  them- 
selves depend  largely  upon  bodily  conditions,  the 
transient  derangements  of  the  natural  Hfe. 
^  Romans,  xii,  2.     St.  Matthew,  xii,  34. 


1 88         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

This  conflict  is  emphasized  the  more  as  the  standard 
is  higher.  Let  any  one  adopt  as  his  own  the  princi- 
ples —  for  in  their  breadth  of  outlook  they  are  more 
than  rules  —  laid  down  by  Jesus  Christ  in  such  pas- 
sages as  St.  Matthew  v,  33-48 ;  or  by  St.  Paul  as  the 
outward  manifestation  of  Love,  i  Corinthians,  xiii, 
4-7,  and  he  will  speedily  have  occasion  to  recognize 
that  natural  temperament  at  its  best  confronts  them 
with  a  strong  opposition,  which  is  liable  to  sudden 
severe  accesses  under  the  pressure  of  bodily  de- 
rangement, or  of  contrary  circumstances  of  many 
exasperating  kinds.  Natural  impulses  start  unex- 
pectedly, as  it  were  out  of  the  ground,  with  a  force 
and  vehemence  which  for  the  moment  defy  opposi- 
tion. They  have  all  the  vigor  which  we  instinctively 
associate  with  Nature,  the  difficulty  of  expelling  whom 
has  been  expressed  in  terse  and  forcible  proverb. 

Re-action,  acting  back,  which  is  so  quickly  evoked 
by  surrounding  conditions,  unexpected  incidents, 
physical  discomfort,  human  provocation,  can  be 
checked  effectively  and  continuously  only  by  a  change 
of  nature  which  shall  not  re-sent,  —  feel  back.  This 
is  the  gist  of  our  Lord's  exposition  of  the  fulfilment 
of  the  Law  and  the  Prophets  throughout  St.  Matthew 
V,  and  with  equal  clearness,  though  less  immediately 
obvious,  in  the  following  chapter.  This  underlies  St. 
Paul's  expression,  "a  new  creature";  ^  itself  the  re- 
flection of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  Christ  concerning  the 
new  birth. ^  The  will  "to  give  him  as  good  as  he 
sends,"  whether  applied  to  persons  or  circumstances, 

'  2  Corinthians,  v,  17.     Galatians,  ii,  20;  vi,  15. 
2  St.  John,  iii,  3-15. 


FULFILMENT  189 


is  Resentment,  and  expresses  natural  impulse;  to 
resist  not  evil/  in  will  as  well  as  in  act,  is  the  oppos- 
ing Christian  command,  and  this  with  inevitable 
directness  goes  to  the  root  of  the  matter  by  prescrib- 
ing a  change  of  heart,  of  inner  temper.^  The  conflict 
between  the  two,  phrased  by  St.  Paul,  "When  I 
would  do  good,  evil  is  present  with  me,"  draws  out 
the  agonizing  appeal,  "Who  shall  deliver  me  from 
this  body  of  death  ?"  The  reply  is  instant,  "I  thank 
God  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord."  ^  This  ac- 
complished is  Fulfilment  of  life. 

This  is  a  Christian  philosophy  of  life;  revealed, 
but  entirely  consonant  with  the  clearest  conclusions 
of  reason.  The  realization  of  it  in  practice  is  suc- 
cess in  the  highest  sense,  summarized  by  Jesus  Christ 
in  the  words,  "Seek  ye  first  the  Kingdom  of  God  and 
His  righteousness"  —  renew  thus  your  inner  spirit^ 
—  "and  all  other  needed  things  shall  be  added  unto 
you."  ^  Added,  how .?  By  the  things  themselves, 
doubtless,  in  so  far  as  expedient;  but  especially  by  a 
resultant  adjustment  between  possession  and  desire 
which,  under  the  name  "contentment,"  all  human 
philosophy  teaches  as  the  nearest  equivalent  of  hap- 
piness, the  supreme  earthly  good.  This  adjustment, 
however,  proceeds  in  the  Gospel  scheme  from  within, 
not  from  without;  from  a  new  nature,  not  from 
changed  externals.  The  words  of  our  Lord  quoted 
are  the  conclusion  and  epitome  of  a  brief  treatise  on 


^  St.  Matthew,  v,  38,  39. 

2  Ihid.,  V,  43-48.     St.  Luke,  vi,  27-36. 

^  Romans,  vii,  21-25.  *  Galatians,  v,  6;  vi,  15,  16. 

^  St.  Matthew,  vi,  33. 


190         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

the  inner  life,^  applicable  to  all  times;  not  least  to 
our  own.  They  agree  perfectly  with  the  conclusions 
of  philosophers;  differing  only,  but  radically,  in  the 
fact  that  these  are  speculative,  whereas  His  are  man- 
datory, spoken  with  authority :   /  say  unto  you.^ 

This  particular  instruction  in  the  things  pertaining 
to  Christian  fulfilment  begins  with  the  words,  "No 
man  can  serve  two  masters."  This  enunciation  of 
a  general  truth  leads  on  to  a  specific  apphcation,  in 
the  declaration  that  between  our  nature,  as  it  is, 
and  the  standards  set  by  Christianity,  which  must 
be  fulfilled  in  us,  there  is  an  inherent  opposition, 
which  cannot  be  reconciled  by  any  adjustment  in  the 
nature  of  compromise.  These  are  two  masters. 
Inevitably  we  will  hate  the  one  and  love  the  other, 
or  we  will  hold  to  the  one  and  despise  the  other. 
Experience  confirms  and  illustrates  this  verdict. 
This  result  follows,  whoever  be  the  two  masters. 
The  particular  opposition  in  this  case  set  forth  by 
Jesus  Christ  —  God  and  Mammon  —  realizes  itself 
in  the  inner  man,  in  the  affections  which  dictate 
choice;  in  anxiety  concerning  worldly  issues  on  the 
one  hand,  or  on  the  other  in  calm  confidence  in  God's 
care.^  These  cannot  be  combined,  any  more  than 
can  resentment  and  the  spirit  of  non-resistance. 
They  may  and  do  coexist,  but  in  perpetual  strife; 
and  victory,  success,  fulfilment,  words  of  nearly 
equivalent  import  in  relation  to  the  ends  of  life,  can 
be  insured  only  by  siding  definitely  with  one  and 

*  St.  Matthew,  vi,  19-34. 

2  Ibid.,  V,  18,  22,  28,  34,  39,  44;  vi,  2,  5,  16,  25;  vii,  24-27,  29. 

^  Philippians,  iv,  6,  7.     i  St.  Peter,  v,  7. 


FULFILMENT  191 


breaking  off  wholly  allegiance  to  the  other.  Unity  of 
service  is  the  condition;  the  scene  of  conflict  is  not 
in  external  surroundings,  moulding  them  to  our  satis- 
faction, which  is  the  measure  of  success  recognized 
by  our  nature  and  the  world,  but  in  the  inner  man, 
conforming  itself  to  the  will  of  God  as  indicated  by 
the  circumstances  of  the  moment.  This  does  not 
forbid  lawful  efforts  to  better  one's  conditions;  but 
it  does  impose  absolutely  the  temper  in  which  such 
effort  shall  be  conducted.  There  must  be  but  one 
master;  his  standard  alone  must  be  followed,  and 
that  in  quietness  of  mind. 

This  requirement,  of  singleness  of  heart,  is  from 
the  nature  of  things  permanent.  It  cannot  change 
nor  relax.  But  as  there  is  no  discharge  in  this  war, 
so  also  there  is  no  defeat.  Victory  is  sure;  and  in 
that  assurance  is  inward  peace,  freedom  from  dis- 
traction. The  man  himself  may  fail,  may  give  up, 
drop  out  of  the  ranks;  but  that  is  his  personal  failure, 
the  failure  of  his  own  will,  not  that  of  the  cause,  nor 
of  the  powers  which  sustain  the  cause.  A  member 
incorporate  in  the  great  Body,  the  head  of  which  is 
Christ,^  he  will  have  his  own  personal  experiences  in 
the  campaign,  his  ups  and  downs;  but  only  by  deser- 
tion can  he  fail  of  his  share  in  the  triumph.  That 
share,  whatever  the  particular  form  it  may  take,  will 
be  to  every  one  the  attainment,  by  himself  (in  union 
with  the  whole  Body)  of  likeness  to  Christ;  a  nature 
his  own,  but  new,  and  in  perfect  conformity  with  the 
will  of  God ;  the  inner  and  the  outer  thenceforth  har- 

*  Ephesians,  i,  22,  23;  iv,  15,  16;  v,  23,  32.  Colossians,  i,  18; 
ii,  19.     St.  John,  xv,  5. 


192         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

monized  forever.  Conflict  ceases  with  its  cause; 
Fulfilment  thence  proceeds  by  undisturbed  evolution ; 
the  sown  seed  fulfils  itself.  To  one  thus  redeemed 
even  this  personal  blessedness  will  be  secondary  to 
the  knowledge  that  in  his  new  nature  he  cannot  but 
please  God.^ 

The  teaching  of  One  like  Jesus  Christ  will  be  many 
sided,  because  of  the  many  conditions  to  which  it 
will  be  applied;  but  from  its  essential  unity  these 
many  applications  will  be  in  harmony.  Thus,  this 
singleness  of  mind  is  a  necessary  condition  of  the 
Life  of  the  Christian,  and  it  has  its  specific  reward  — 
light:  If  thine  eye  be  single,  thy  whole  body  shall  be 
full  of  light.^  This  is  found  restated  in  another  form 
in  the  Beatitudes:  Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart, 
for  they  shall  see  God.^  The  vision  of  God,  knowl- 
edge of  God,  is  light  ;^  the  light  of  the  knowledge  of 
the  Glory  of  God  in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ.^  The 
Life  of  Christ  is  the  Hght  of  men.®  The  condition 
is  purity  of  heart;  and  purity  is  the  culmination  of 
the  process  of  fulfilment,  that  begins  in  the  Power 
of  God  and  progresses  in  likeness  to  Him,  wrought 
and  completed  by  intercourse,  till  it  ends  in  purity, 
which  is  the  human  analogue  of  holiness,  the  pecu- 
liar   characteristic    of   God    Himself.^      Then    like 


^  Romans,  viii,  1-13.  ^  St.  Matthew,  vi,  22. 

3  Ihid.,  V,  8. 

*  St.  John,  xvii,  3.  St.  Luke,  i,  76-79.  Acts,  xxvi,  18. 
St.  John,  viii,  12.      Ephesians,  v,  8-10.      i  St.  Peter,  ii,  9. 

^  2  Corinthians,  iv,  6. 

^  St.  John,  i,  4;   ix,  5;  xii,  35,  46. 

^  Isaiah,  vi,  3;  Ivii,  15.  St.  Luke,  i,  49.  Revelation,  iv,  8. 
The  practical  distinction  between  holy  and  pure  would  seem  to 


FULFILMENT  193 


seeth  Like;  purity  recognizes  Holiness.  Purity  of 
heart  is  the  final  outcome  of  the  single  eye,  of  the 
concentrated  purpose;   in  it  they  are  completed. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  in  common  speech  the 
words  "pure"  and  "chaste"  are  so  often  used  as 
synonymes.  A  pure  woman  means  to  many  simply  a 
chaste  woman.  "Chaste,"  however,  is  a  word  of  sig- 
nificance inferior  to  "pure."  It  finds  apt  illustration 
in  the  word  "caste,"  which  is  identical  in  deriva- 
tion. Caste  is  a  European  word,  applied  by  Euro- 
peans to  the  system  in  India  known  to  us  by  that 
name.  It  requires  freedom  from  outward  defilement; 
such  as  the  "common"  and  "unclean"  from  which 
the  Jews  kept  themselves.^  Such  observance  is  cere- 
monial and  formal.  It  may  have  value,  provided 
that  it  be  not  merely  formal;  that  the  inner  purpose 
correspond  to  that  which  the  outward  observance 
symbolizes.  Forms  are  good,  if  they  preserve  and 
enshrine  the  spirit  of  which  they  should  be  the  em- 
bodiment. The  word  "chasten,"  another  derivative, 
applies  properly  to  external  correction,  —  correction 
from  without,  although  intended  to  promote  removal 
of  the  inward  evil  which  truly  defiles.  With  this 
agree  our  Lord's  words,  "That  which  cometh  from 
w^ithout  does  not  defile;  but  evil  that  cometh  from 
within  does,  for  from  within,  from  the  heart  of  men, 
proceed  wickedness  of  many  kinds."  These  really 
defile.^ 

be  that  holiness  is  a  natural,  original  attribute,  —  God's  Nature  is 
holy,  His  Being  Holiness,  —  while  purity  is  a  condition  not  origi- 
nal, but  wrought. 

^  Acts,  X,  14,  15,  28;  xi,  2,  3.     Galatians,  ii,  11-14. 

^  St.  Matthew,  XV,  1-20.      St.  Mark,  vii,  1-23. 

13 


194         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

It  is  to  the  correction  of  such  evil  within  that  the 
words  "pure"  and  "purity"  apply.  Purity  is  separa- 
tion, not  merely,  nor  chiefly,  from  external  contami- 
nation, but  from  evil  combined  with  good  in  the 
nature.  The  derivation,  from  the  Greek  word  for 
fire,  suggests  the  illuminative  comparison  with  the 
separation  of  a  pure  metal  from  the  compound,  the 
impure  condition,  in  which  it  exists  in  the  ore.  The 
agency  for  this  is  fire.  The  result  is  not  merely  free- 
dom from  external  defilement,  such  as  rust,  or  dirt, 
which  conceivably  may  occur  without  serious  injury. 
As  Christ  says  in  another  connection.  He  that  is 
bathed  needeth  not  save  to  wash  his  feet,  but  is 
clean  every  whit.^  Purging  by  fire  removes  com- 
plexity of  condition,  yielding  a  substance  homogene- 
ous and  entirely  free  from  alien  element;  that  is,  pure. 
To  human  nature  thus  refined  is  promised  the  vision 
of  God. 

In  the  life  of  the  Christian,  therefore.  Fulfilment  is 
properly  conceived  less  as  a  termination  than  as  a 
process;  the  result  of  which  is  purity  of  character, 
shown  in  singleness  of  purpose,  in  the  one  Master 
recognized.  Fulfilment  in  its  exhaustive  meaning 
will  never  be  attained ;  for  in  such  sense  it  would  be 
a  progress  completed,  cessation  of  growth,  a  condition 
not  to  be  predicated  of  any  created  spiritual  being. 
Successive  stages  may  come  to  an  end,  as  in 
death;  but  beyond  this  there  will  be  advance,  de- 
velopment, growth,  throughout  eternity.  In  that 
future  state  of  existence,  however,  we  have  good  as- 
surance that  there  will  not  be  the  painful  element  of 
*  St.  John,  xiii,  lo. 


FULFILMENT  195 


struggle  and  internal  conflict  —  "without  fightings, 
within  fears"  ^  —  which  is  inseparable  from  condi- 
tions here.  Jesus  Christ  speaks  of  His  Peace,  which 
He  bequeaths  also  to  His  followers ;  ^  yet  in  the  days 
of  His  humiliation  external  conditions  moved  Him 
to  tears,^  and  He  underwent  inward  "trouble."  ^  It 
is  here  the  common  lot,  to  which  He  would  not  be  an 
exception. 

We  know  little  in  detail  of  the  changes  which  follow 
death,  but  we  do  know  that  it  is  a  change  for  the 
better.  St.  Paul  says  decisively,  "To  depart,  and  to 
be  with  Christ,  is  far  better."  ^  He  adds  here  no  par- 
ticulars of  circumstance,  but  St.  John  in  the  Revela- 
tion does :  Blessed  are  the  dead  who  die  in  the  Lord ; 
for  they  rest  from  their  labors,  and  their  works  follow 
them.^  The  contrast  between  labor  and  work  we 
may  believe  expresses  the  gain  of  death.  Develop- 
ment and  activity  progress,  but  work  no  longer  con- 
tends painfully  against  the  inward  grain  and  the 
outward  harassment.  "If  in  this  hfe  only  we  have 
hoped  in  Christ,"  says  St.  Paul  again,  "we  are  of  all 
men  most  pitiable."  '^  It  need  not  be  supposed  that 
in  this  reflection  St.  Paul  is  looking  back  regretfully 
upon  the  surrender  he  had  made,  the  outward  con- 
ditions of  struggle  and  hardship  which  he  had  em- 
braced, as  the  Israelites  in  their  hearts  turned  back 

^  2  Corinthians,  vii,  5.  ^  St.  John,  xiv,  27;  xvi,  33. 

^  St.  Luke,  xix,  41-44.      St.  John,  xi,  33-38. 

*  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  36-44.  St.  Mark,  xiv,  32-40.  St.  Luke, 
xxii,  39-46.      St.  John,  xii,  27;  xiii,  21. 

^  PhiHppians,  i,  23.  i  Corinthians,  ii,  9.  Compare  St.  Luke, 
xxiii,  43- 

^  Revelation,  xiv,  13.  "^   I  Corinthians,  xv,  19. 


196         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

to  the  indulgences  of  Egypt.^  The  loss  of  which  he 
speaks,  but  which  he  knows  he  cannot  incur,  is  that 
of  the  hope  of  a  future  "with  Christ."  Not  to  have 
known  that  hope  —  not  to  have  "hoped"  it  —  is  in 
effect  to  have  lost  it,  by  never  having  it;  and  this  is 
a  loss  so  pitiable  that  with  it  none  other  can  be  com- 
pared. The  application  of  this  thought  is  wide. 
Every  life  is  pitiable  which,  in  life  motive,  gives  to 
success  here  predominance  over  abiding  with  Christ 
—  in  Christ. 

To  this  future  we  may  trust  to  pass,  if  fulfilment 
of  character  has  progressed  as  far  as  this  present  life 
admits.  First  the  blade,  then  the  ear,  then  the  full 
grain  in  the  ear;  but  when  the  fruit  is  ripe,  straight- 
way God  putteth  forth  the  sickle,  because  the  harvest 
is  come.^  So  St.  Paul  speaks  of  the  fulfilment  of  his 
career:  The  time  of  my  departure  is  at  hand.  I 
have  fought  the  good  fight,  I  have  finished  the  course, 
I  have  kept  the  faith. ^  The  fruit  was  ripe,  the  harvest 
come.  He  continues,  Henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for 
me  the  crown  of  righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the 
righteous  judge,  shall  give  me  at  that  day;  and  not 
to  me  only,  but  also  to  all  them  that  have  loved  His 
appearing.  To  love  His  appearing  is  evidently  only 
another  expression  for  St.  PauFs  former  longing  to  be 
with  Christ.^  Clearly,  therefore,  the  fulfilment  of 
reward  is  the  crown ;  but  of  what  ^  Of  righteousness, 
completed  in  character  and  pregnant  of  future  de- 
velopment.    And  it   is    promised  —  to  whom  .?     To 

*  Acts,  vii,  39,  40.     Numbers,  xi,  4-6;  xiv,   1-3.     Exodus, 
xvi,  2,  3;  xvii,  2,  3.  ^   St.  Mark,  iv,  26-29. 

^  2  Timothy,  iv,  6-8.  *  Philippians,  i,  21-24. 


FULFILMENT  I97 


them  that  have  loved  His  appearing.  The  fighting 
the  good  fight,  the  running  the  course,  the  keeping  the 
faith,  specified  of  St.  Paul  himself,  are  embraced  all 
in  the  words  "have  loved  His  appearing";  as  fruit  is 
latent  in  the  seed  from  which  it  springs,  and,  like 
that  of  a  tree  planted  by  the  waterside,  will  be  brought 
forth  in  due  season.^  So  is  the  Kingdom  of  God,  as 
if  a  man  should  cast  seed  upon  the  earth,  and  should 
sleep  and  rise,  night  and  day,  and  the  seed  should 
spring  up  and  grow,  he  knoweth  not  how;  for  the 
earth  beareth  fruit  of  herself.'  The  life  and  the  fruit 
are  enwrapped  in  the  plant.  A  good  tree  cannot 
bring  forth  evil  fruit.^  The  utmost  of  fulfilment,  in 
action,  depends  upon  fulfilment  in  character. 

It  is  therefore  upon  the  interior  life  that  the  care 
of  the  Christian  must  fasten ;  as  he  who  hopes  for 
the  fullness  of  the  harvest  expects  it  ultimately  and 
entirely  from  the  seed,  conditioned  only  by  the  care 
represented  by  ploughing,  sowing,  and  tendmg.  The 
writers  of  the  Testaments,  New  and  Old,  find  in  the 
labors  of  the  agriculturist,  and  in  the  fields  of  natural 
history,  their  most  frequent  and  suggestive  analogies; 
the  contrast  between  the  life  of  the  plant  and  the 
conditions  of  its  fruitfulness  emphasize  God's  part 
and  man's  part.  The  construction  of  buildings  in  its 
gradual  progress  also  offers  an  illustration,  fruitful 
of  spiritual  instruction;  but  here  it  is  the  evidence 
of  design,  in  the  mutual  relation  and  dependence  of 
the  several  parts,  which  illuminates  God's  purposes : 
Ye  are  built  upon  the  foundation  of  the  Apostles 

*  Psalm,  i,  3.  ^  St.  Mark,  iv,  26. 

^  St.  Matthew,  vii,  15-20, 


i/^ 


198         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

and  Prophets,  Jesus  Christ  Himself  being  the  chief 
corner  stone;  in  Whom  each  several  building,  fitly 
framed  together,  groweth  into  a  holy  temple  in  the 
Lord.^  A  building  represents  the  realization  of 
thought,  but  it  has  in  itself  no  principle  of  growth. 
Its  development  proceeds  from  without  itself,  that 
of  fruit  from  within.  St.  Paul  recognizes  this  dis- 
tinction in  a  passage  in  which  he  uses  both  similes, 
in  the  manner  appropriate  to  each.^  "Ye  are  God's 
tilled  land,  ye  are  God's  building."  As  regards  the 
former:  "I  indeed  planted,  Apollos  watered;  but 
God  gave  the  increase.  Neither  he  that  planted  nor 
he  that  watereth  is  anything;  but  God  Who  gave  the 
increase."  Increase  is  the  outcome  of  the  plant's 
being;  given,  it  is  true,  by  God,  but  still  the  effectual 
working  of  an  inner  principle.  But  the  building, 
while  also  of  God,  brings  out  most  clearly  man's 
work,  his  activities,  and  their  dangers.  "According 
to  the  grace  of  God  given  me  as  a  wise  master-builder 
I  laid  a  foundation;  and  another  buildeth*  thereon. 
But  let  each  man  take  heed  how  he  buildeth 
thereon."  "  If  his  work  abide,  he  shall  receive  a 
reward ;  if  his  work,  being  tried,  be  burned,  he  shall 
suffer  loss." 

Hoping  therefore  for  increase  —  for  fulfilment  — 
let  us  look  chiefly  within,  upon  dispositions  and  pur- 
poses, for  indications  of  the  growth  which  is  the 
characteristic  of  life.  God's  works  are  the  outcome 
of  His  Being.^  By  them  we  recognize  His  character; 
but  they  are  only  evidences,  they  are  not  themselves 

*  Ephesians,  ii,  20,  21.  ^   I  Corinthians,  iii,  5-15. 

^  Romans,  i,  19-21. 


FULFILMENT  199 


either  Being  or  character.  If  we  could  know  His 
Nature  otherwise,  we  could  predict  from  this  the 
quality  of  His  actions,  as  surely  as  from  a  fig  tree  we 
may  expect  figs,  or  from  a  vine  grapes.  The  spiritual 
life  we  have  is  of  Him;  and  as  His  essence  is  Love, 
from  which  spring  His  works  of  love,  so  in  measure 
now,  and  in  potency,  our  life  is  love.  If  it  so  be,  and 
in  proportion  as  it  is,  it  will,  it  cannot  but,  bring  forth 
works  of  love.  A  good  tree  cannot  bring  forth  evil 
fruit.  Therefore  we  are  to  seek  our  fruitage  of  loving 
works  not  merely  from  strenuous  control  of  conduct, 
but  chiefly  from  diligent  cultivation  of  character; 
looking  less  to  outward  acts  than  to  inward  inclina- 
tions as  the  domain  of  effort.  If  conscience  bear 
witness  to  exertion  to  bring  every  thought  into  cap- 
tivity to  the  law  of  Christ,^  there  is  assurance  of  life; 
and,  as  in  the  life  of  the  natural  creation,  the  increase, 
which  is  of  God,  will  follow  by  a  process  of  natural 
growth  to  which  we  contribute  only  the  nursing  care 
of  him  who  ploughs,  sows,  waters,  watches. 

It  may  be  said  indeed  that  this  directing  of  effort 
upon  the  inner  motive  is  the  precise  fulfilment  which 
our  Lord  gave  to  the  Law  and  the  Prophets,  and 
which  St.  Paul  elaborates  in  more  than  one  of  his 
Epistles.  Christ  so  fulfilled  in  His  Person.  The 
prophet  foretold  of  Him  that  He  would  stand  before 
His  enemies  as  a  lamb  dumb  before  its  shearers, 
or  as  one  led  to  slaughter.  "When  He  was  aflBicted, 
He  opened  not  His  mouth.''  ^    This  is  outward  con- 

*  2  Corinthians,  x,  3-5. 

^  Isaiah,  liii,  7.  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  63;  xxvii,  11-14.  St. 
Mark,  xiv,  61.      St.  Luke,  xxiii,  8-1 1.      St.  John,  xviii,  22,  23. 


200         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

duct.  He  Himself  gives  the  explanation,  "I  am  meek 
and  lowly  in  heart,'  ^  the  inner  spirit.  He  so  ful- 
filled in  teaching;  for  this  requirement  of  inward 
conformity  constitutes  the  backbone  of  the  Sermon 
on  the  Mount,  when  outward  acts,  conduct,  and  activ- 
ities alike  are  judged,  approved,  or  condemned,  by 
the  inner  motive.  True  obedience  is  in  spirit;  except 
as  the  outcome  of  this,  the  obedience  of  act  is  value- 
less. Obedience  may  be  in  act  and  not  in  spirit.  Our 
Lord  teaches  expressly  that  a  man  may  abstain  from 
murder  or  adultery  in  literal  obedience  to  law,  and 
yet  be  morally  guilty  of  either;  but  one  who  is  habit- 
ually obedient  in  spirit  will  inevitably  be  so  in  act. 
There  may  be  falls;  but  if  the  heart  be  clearly  will- 
ing, the  will  is  recognized  and  accepted,  even  when 
weakness  has  betrayed  purpose. 

Of  this  St.  Peter's  momentary  defection  furnishes 
a  complete  instance.^  What  more  wretched  than  the 
act .?  The  denial,  bad  enough  in  any  case,  was  worst 
in  one  to  whom  had  been  given  the  light  of  the  great 
confession :  He  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  Living 
God.^  "I  know  not  the  man.'*  There  is  the  bald 
act;  but,  for  all  its  cowardice,  St.  Peter  loved  Christ, 
before,  at  the  moment,  and  after.  "Lord,  Thou 
knowest  that  I  love  Thee."  Christ  did  know,  and 
accepted  the  assurance,  the  little  word  of  love,  in 
compensation  for  the  whole  act  of  desertion;^  just 
because,  knowing  the  heart,  He  knew  that  in  it  there 

*  St.  Matthew,  xi,  29. 

^  Ihid.^  xxvi,  69-75.  St.  Mark,  xiv,  66-72.  St.  Luke,  xxii, 
54-62.     St.  John,  xviii,  16,  17,  25-27. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xvi,  15,  16.  *  St.  John,  xxi,  15-19. 


FULFILMENT  20 1 


was,  and  throughout  had  been,  life  and  love.  At  the 
moment  St.  Peter  denied  Christ  it  was  just  as  certain 
as  at  any  time  in  his  life  that  in  the  end  he  would 
lay  down  his  life  for  Christ's  sake.^  The  tree  could 
not  but  bring  forth  its  fruit  —  in  due  season.  It  is 
mockery  to  urge  that  such  a  fall  is  consistent  with  the 
Life  of  the  Christian,  that  a  good  tree  may  now  and 
then  yield  bad  fruit;  but  it  is  entirely  consistent  with 
all  experience  of  conflict,  of  war,  and  conflict  is  the 
unavoidable  accompaniment  of  the  Christian's  life. 
The  flesh  warreth  against  the  spirit,  and  the  spirit 
against  the  flesh.^  It  is  no  strange  thing  that  there 
should  be  reverses  even  in  a  successful  campaign. 
In  any  struggle  it  may  seem  long  doubtful  which 
side  will  prevail;  how  much  less  strange  that  there 
should  be  an  occasional  rattling  fall.  It  is  not  such 
fall,  but  the  combatant's  courage  and  perseverance, 
the  state  of  his  will,  which  contains  the  promise  of 
victory  or  ultimate  defeat. 

If  a  man  love  Me,  he  will  keep  My  commandments, 
said  Christ.^  The  sequence  of  cause  and  effect  could 
not  be  stated  more  positively;  the  spirit,  the  dispo- 
sition, the  affection,  will  result  in  the  conduct.  He 
zhat  loveth  Me  not  keepeth  not  my  commandments.* 
And  His  commandments,  though  in  detailed  appHca- 
^ion  many,  are  in  substance  one.^  The  first  is  :  Thou 
/shalt  love  —  God.  The  second  is  :  Thou  shalt  love 
—  Man.     It  is  not.  Thou  shalt  do;    but,  Thou  shalt 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  33-35.  St.  Mark,  xlv,  29-31.  St.  Luke, 
XX"»  31-34.      St.  John,  xiii,  37,  38. 

^  Romans,  vii,  18-23.      Galatians,  v,  16-24. 

^  St.  John,  xiv,  15-23.  *  Ibid.y  xiv,  24. 

^   St.  Matthew,  xxii,  34-40. 


202  THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

love.  To  paraphrase  St.  Paul :  ^  Do  we  then  make 
acts  of  none  effect  through  love  ?  Nay,  v^e  establish 
acts;  for  love  it  is,  and  only  love,  that  can  bring  forth 
acts  of  Christ,  as  a  fig  tree  brings  forth  figs.  Of  this, 
the  whole  missionary  movement  of  Christendom,  in 
its  many  ramifications,  is  an  instance  to  those  who, 
hearing,  are  wiUing  to  hear.  It  is  what  it  is,  great 
and  imposing,  abounding  in  the  fruit  of  activities,  in 
virtue  of  Love,  prompting  the  thousands  of  self- 
sacrifices,  of  service  and  of  money  for  Christ's  sake, 
of  which  it  is  composed;  but  it  is  not  what  it  should 
be,  because  many  to  whom  it  should  appeal  have  not 
the  ears  of  love  to  hear,  nor  the  heart  of  love  to 
respond.  If  such  acts,  or  rather  conduct,  be  con- 
stantly wanting,  this  is  evidence  of  lack  of  Hfe.  By 
their  fruits  ye  shall  know;  but  this  does  not  put 
fruits,  acts,  in  the  place  of  love,  it  confines  them  to 
their  proper  place  of  evidence. 

This,  too,  is  the  significance  of  that  other  word 
of  Christ's,  in  close  connection  with  the  one  just 
quoted.  He  that  hath  My  commandments  and  keep- 
eth  them,  he  it  is  that  loveth  Me.^  This  does  not 
say  that  the  observance  of  commandment  is  love, 
but  that  it  is  an  evidence  that  love  exists;  without  it. 
His  commandment,  though  not  in  itself  grievous,  is 
most  grievous,  even  intolerable.  Who  in  the  moment 
of  passion  shall  refrain  from  the  irritated  word,  who 
from  sinful  desires  of  the  heart,  who  shall  turn  the 
other  cheek,  go  the  second  mile,  love  his  enemy, 
doing  good  and  praying  for  him  .?  ^     Who  shall  be 

^  Romans,  iii,  31.  ^  gj.    John,  xiv,  21;  xv,  10. 

^  St.  Matthew,  V,  21-48. 


FULFILMENT  203 


meek,  and  lowly  in  heart,^  poor  in  spirit  ^  (not  mean 
spirited)  ?  Who  shall  steadily  return  good  for  evil  ?  ^ 
—  unless  for  the  love  of  Christ.  For  His  sake  these 
things  may  be  done ;  ^  or  at  least,  if  too  often  ill  done, 
the  desire  to  do  may  be  there;  but  there  is  no  other 
conceivable  reason  satisfactory  to  our  common  sense. 
This  or  that  argument  of  expediency,  bearing  on  the 
future,  may  be  adduced ;  but  their  general  impotence 
is  known.  It  is  questionable  whether  such  control 
pays;  but,  even  granting  it  does  in  the  long  run,  no 
one  knows  that  the  long  run  will  be  allowed  him. 
Upon  the  whole,  as  observation  shows,  a  present 
gratification  of  impulse  is  worth  a  dozen  future  con- 
siderations. Love  for  Christ  is  such  present  impulse. 
It  alone,  as  an  inward  motive,  consecrates  action; 
and  it  alone  is  to  the  believer  both  motive  and  reward. 
Deeds,  the  effect  of  which  is  beneficent,  may  thus 
become  intrinsically  valueless  because  done  from  a 
worthless  motive,^  or  from  one  secondary  to  the  love 
of  Christ.  To  take  the  highest  example,  works  of 
pure  benevolence,  unselfish  in  motive,  fall  short  of 
Christ's  standard,  of  that  fulfilment  which  is  the 
crown  of  the  Christian's  Life,  if  done  without  refer- 
ence to  Him.  He  that  loveth  even  father  or  mother, 
wife  or  child,  more  than  Me,  is  not  worthy  of  Me.^ 
This  naming  of  the  nearest  of  neighbors,  the  closest 

^   St.  Matthew,  xi,  29,  30.  ^  Ihid.,  v,  3. 

^  Ihid.,  V,  45.      St.  Luke,  vi,  27-36.      Romans,  xii,  19-21. 

*  2  Corinthians,  v,  14,  15.  i  Corinthians,  x,  31;  xv,  17-19, 
32.  Philippians,  iii,  7-14.  Colossians,  iii,  17.  I  St.  Peter,  i, 
8,  9;  iv,  II. 

^  St.  Matthew,  vi,  i,  2,  5,  6,  16-18. 

^  Ihid.y  X,  i^j.     St.  Luke,  xiv,  26. 


204         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

of  kin,  those  having  the  very  first  claim  on  our  good 
offices,  shows  that  no  motive  is  accepted  apart  from 
love  to  Him.  Benevolence,  kindliness,  family  af- 
fection, are  but  natural  qualities,  the  exercise  of 
which  is  pleasant  to  the  possessor;  to  exert  them, 
when  not  too  great  an  effort  of  self-sacrifice,  is  a 
present  gratification.  The  very  publicans  love  those 
who  love  them.^  Though  fallen,  mankind  still  re- 
mains keenly  sensible  to  appeals  to  sympathy  and  to 
moral  considerations,  and  finds  pleasure  in  answer- 
ing to  them.  If  there  were  not  these  and  kindred 
qualities  in  man,  there  would  be  nothing  to  respond  to 
the  message  of  Christ,  which  is  addressed  to  the 
sympathies  and  the  moral  sense. 

Daily  life  bears  constant  testimony  to  the  abundant 
existence  of  this  raw  material  of  good  dispositions, 
just  as  it  does  to  opposite  characteristics,  and  to  all 
the  long  array  of  evil  incentives  summarized  under 
the  words,  "  the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the  devil."  The 
widespread  existence  of  the  estimable  qualities, 
so  that  scarcely  any  man  is  wholly  without  them, 
must  be  fully  admitted,  and  the  benefit  of  the  deeds 
issuing  from  them  must  be  recognized ;  but  in  them- 
selves alone  they  indicate  simply  that  man  has  been 
by  God  created  in  His  own  image. ^  They  do  not 
necessarily  prove  that  the  individual  action  proceeds 
from  any  motive  which  has  in  it  the  seed  of  spiritual 
advance,  towards  the  full  restoration  of  that  image. 
On  the  contrary,  observation  demonstrates  that  they 

^  St.  Matthew,  V,  46. 

^  Genesis,  i,  26,  27;  v,  i;  ix,  6.  I  Corinthians,  xi,  7.  St. 
James,  iii,  9. 


FULFILMENT  205 


often  rise  no  higher  than  kindly  impulse,  often  alloyed 
with  tendencies  of  self-pleasing  far  from  admirable. 
In  rebuking  ostentatious  benevolence  as  well  as  osten- 
tatious piety,  Christ  does  not  confine  Himself  to 
censure  of  ostentation.  He  indicates  in  each  connec- 
tion the  one  consecrating  motive :  Thy  Father  which 
seeth  in  secret  ^  —  penetrating  not  only  the  secrecy 
of  the  act  but  the  secret  of  the  heart.^  In  precise  con- 
formity with  this,  our  Lord  also  selects  for  special 
commendation  small  acts,  unknown  acts,  done  in 
God's  Name.  Familiar  instances  are  those  of  the 
widow's  two  mites,  and  "the  cup  of  cold  water  be- 
cause ye  are  Christ's."  ^ 

The  contrast  between  acts  and  the  inner  spirit 
which  prompts  them  is  emphasized  in  the  parable  of 
the  Pharisee  and  the  Publican.^  The  works  of  the 
one  were  self-sacrificing  and  large.  How  many  to- 
day exercise  such  self-restraint  as  is  implied  in  fasting 
twice  in  the  week,  and  giving  a  tenth  of  all  their  in- 
come ?  The  other,  so  far  as  appears,  like  St.  Peter 
in  his  repentance,  brought  no  outward  offering  but 
words.  "God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner."  Yet 
this  is  accepted  and  preferred.  The  sacrifice  of  God 
is  a  broken  spirit;  within,  not  without.  That  at- 
tained, but  not  before,  the  Psalmist  brings  the  sacri- 
fices to  which  works  of  benevolence  are  a  present 
equivalent.^ 

It  was  probably  St.  Paul's  experience  as  a  Pharisee 

^  St.  Matthew,  vi,  4,  6,  18. 

^  Hebrews,  iv,  12,  13.      Psalm,  cxxxix,  1-12. 

^  St.  Matthew,  x,  40-42.      St.  Mark,  ix,  41. 

*  St.  Luke,  xviii,  9-14.  ^  Psalm,  H,  17-19. 


2o6         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTL\X 

that  gives  such  vigor  and  reiteration  to  his  contrast 
between  Faith  and  Works.  The  opposition  between 
these  is  in  his  apprehension  that  between  the  interior 
spirit  and  external  observance,  even  when  observance 
is  of  the  clearest  and  most  imperative  moral  obHga- 
tions.  His  enumeration  to  the  Philippians  ^  of  his 
advantages  as  a  Pharisee  was  no  occasional  utter- 
ance,  but  the  recollection  of  a  vivid  past,  often  alluded 
to  at  other  times.^  In  the  righteousness  of  the  law, 
which  was  chiefly  in  outward  act  and  observance, 
he  found  himself  blameless,  like  the  Pharisee  of 
Christ's  parable;  but  when  confronted  with  the 
command  to  interior  conformity,  "Thou  shalt  not 
covet,"  he  recognized  an  impossibility,^  which,  to 
use  his  own  word,  "slew''  him.  "The  command- 
ment which  was  ordained  to  life  I  found  to  be  unto 
death,"  until  in  Christ  he  learned  the  end  of  the 
law  by  its  fulfilment  for  him,  and  ultimately  in  him. 
There  was  the  command,  and  there  the  impossibihty 
of  obedience.  This  meant  death,  but  for  the  De- 
liverer, ^^llo  took  upon  Himself  all  the  guilt,  and 
fulfilled  for  all  men  the  obligation.  His  Life,  the 
Life  of  Christ,  interior,  hid  with  God,  is  thence- 
forth that  of  St.  Paul,  converting  weakness  into 
strength,  impossibility  into  possibilirv^  This  is  ef- 
fected through  Faith,  an  inward  disposition.  Thus 
the  Law  was  to  St.  Paul  the  tutor  to  bring  him  to 
Christ. 


^   Philippians,  iii,  4-7. 

-  Acts,  xxii,  3,  4,  5,  19,  20;  xxiii,  6;  xxvi,  4-7,  9-12.      2  Co- 
rinthians, xi,  21,  22.      Galatians,  i,  13,  14. 
^  Romans,  vii,  7-1 1. 


FULFILMENT  207 


The  Commands  of  Jesus  Christ  are  also  ''  Laws," 
but  the  most  characteristic  are  addressed,  like  "  Thou 
shalt  not  covet,"  to  the  interior  disposition;  they 
pierce  to  the  thoughts  and  intents  of  the  heart.^  For 
example,  "Be  not  anxious."  "  He  who  seeks  to  obey 
will  find,  like  St.  Paul,  that  he  is  incapable  of  full 
obedience,  is  carnal,  sold  under  sin;^  and  that  the 
law  being  spiritual  will  slay  him.  Only  through 
death,  to  self,  will  he  pass  to  life  in  Christ;  out  of 
weakness  be  made  strong.^ 

All  this  is,  of  course,  but  the  reiteration  of  the  moral 
axiom  that  the  value  of  an  action  is  in  its  motive, 
which  needs  in  this  connection  to  be  reinforced  by  a 
corollar}^  itself  an  axiom  in  that  it  scarcely  needs 
demonstration,    viz.:     that   the  choice  of  a    mouve 
lower  than  the  highest  known  is  a  moral  derehction. 
That  this    much    is    true    is   not  merely  axiomatic, 
self-evident;    there  is  the  further  consideration  that 
action  will  be  proporrioned  to  motive,  and  that  he 
who  is  swayed  by  an  impulse  lower  than  the  highest 
—  that  is,  the  strongest  —  will  be  less  fruitful  in  the 
good  deeds  themselves,  as  well  as  defective  in  char- 
acter.    Appeal  may  be  made  confidently  to  history 
that,  in  proportion  to  means  possessed,  the  motive, 
"because   ye   belong   to    Christ,"    apphcable   to    all 
mankind,  has  been  and  to-day  is  vastly  more  fruitful 
in  deeds  than  are  any  natural  impulses  of  kindliness 
or  generositv.      It  has  a  stronger  power  of  initiative. 
The  mites  of  the  widow,  the   cups   of  cold  water, 
the  self-denials  of  moderate  circumstances,  unknown 

1   Hebrews,  iv,  12.  '   St.  Matthew,  vi,  25,  31. 

3  Romans,  vii,  14.  '  Hebrews,  xi,  34. 


2o8         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

to  man  but  known  to  God,  have  never  ceased  pour- 
ing into  the  treasury  of  Christ. 

In  Hke  secrecy  —  in  the  interior  Hfe  known  only 
to  Him  Who  seeth  in  secret  —  is  wrought  out  much 
of  that  duty  of  love  to  God,  which  is  even  greater 
than  benevolence,  love  to  man.  The  duty  of  piety, 
of  the  filial  relation  of  love  to  God  in  Christ,  is  the 
first  and  great  commandment.  The  poor  are  not 
only  they  who  have  little  money.  There  are  also  the 
poor  in  native  good  dispositions,  whose  hearts  know 
their  own  bitterness;  who  fain  would  in  temper,  in 
love,  joy,  peace,  long-suflPering,  gentleness,  meek- 
ness, self-control,  give  to  Christ  abundantly,  if  only 
they  could ;  who  from  the  poverty  of  a  weak,  or  an 
arid,  or  a  perverse  nature,  can  give  only  the  rare  cup 
of  cold  water,  wring  the  few  mites  of  kindly  impulse, 
realize  here  and  there  something  of  love,  not  in  bare 
act,  which  is  cheap,  but  in  that  steady  burning  pur- 
pose which  is  life  and  light.  All  men  share  this  evil 
state,  if  they  did  but  know;  but  when  known  and 
felt,  it  brings  its  own  hope.  The  first  promise  of  the 
Beatitudes,  the  first  utterance  of  the  Sermon  on  the 
Mount,  is  to  those  conscious  of  inward  poverty. 
Blessed  are  the  poor  in  spirit,  for  theirs  is  the  king- 
dom of  heaven;  ^  a  Kingdom  within,^  which  is  not 
of  outward  observance,  but  righteousness,  and  peace, 
and  joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost.^  The  very  sorrow  over 
disabilities  of  temper  and  disposition,  if  the  motive 
of  the  sorrow  be  for  Christ,  carries  His  assurance 

^  St.  Matthew,  v,  3. 

^  St.  Luke,  xvii,  20,  21.      I  Corinthians,  iii,  16,  17;  vi,  19. 

^  Romans,  xiv,  17. 


FULFILMENT  209 


of  success :  Blessed  are  they  that  mourn,  for  they 
shall  be  comforted,  —  strengthened ;  Blessed  are 
they  that  hunger  and  thirst  after  righteousness,  for 
they  shall  be  filled.^ 

Like  evil  in  general,  the  existence  of  weakness  is 
a  mystery;  but  it  is  one  with  which  the  word  of  God 
deals  with  peculiar  directness  and  clearness.  That 
all  characters  have  weak  as  well  as  strong  points  is 
a  matter  of  general  observation.  Strength  itself  is 
often  a  weakness;  "the  defects  of  one's  qualities" 
is  a  saying  as  shrewd  as  it  is  cynical.  Indeed,  the 
man  strong  of  w^ll  and  purpose  runs  risk  of  being 
weakest,  deceived  by  the  strength  which  in  master- 
ing persons  and  conditions  masters  also  himself 
Every  character  is  as  a  dominion  which  has  its  rich 
and  its  waste  places.  Both  are  to  be  possessed  for 
Christ;  the  one  to  be  improved,  the  other  to  be  re- 
deemed. It  is  a  work  of  patience,  but  the  promise  is 
sure.  In  your  patience  ye  shall  win  your  souls,^ 
shall  enter  into  possession  of  all  the  faculties  of  your 
personality,  till  even  the  wilderness  and  the  solitary 
place  shall  blossom  as  the  rose;  ^  but  all  that  it  may 
be  for  the  service  of  Christ. 

Suffering  is  an  incident  of  weakness;  and  that  the 
Son  of  God  was  made  perfect  by  suffering  ^  indicates 
the  purpose  of  weakness  in  the  scheme  of  redemption, 
which  is  the  fulfilment  of  man's  character  as  a 
spiritual  being.     Much  of  our  weakness  is  from  sin, 

*  St.  Matthew,  V,  4,  6. 

^  St.  Luke,  xxi,  19.     Hebrews,  xii,  i-ii.    St.  James,  i,  2-4,  12. 

^  Isaiah,  xxxv,  i,  2.  *  Hebrews,  v,  8-10. 

14 


210         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

sinful;  but  that  He  Who  knew  no  sin  ^  knew  weak- 
ness shows  that  weakness  not  only  is  not  neces- 
sarily sin,  but  that  it  is  a  condition  necessary  to 
ultimate  perfection.  This  the  Old  Testament  an- 
nounced in  words  adopted  by  the  New:  Thou 
madest  man  lower  than  the  angels;  Thou  didst 
crown  him  with  glory  and  honor.^  These  are  the 
two  stages,  connected  as  means  and  result.  They 
are  spoken  primarily  of  Christ,  of  His  humiliation 
and  His  victory;  but  His  humiliation  was  in  making 
Himself  one  with  us,^  and  in  that  union  His  victory 
becomes  in  all  its  stages  that  of  universal  mankind, 
if  true  to  Him :  crucified  with  Him,  dead  with  Him, 
risen  with  Him,  ascended  with  Him. 

In  respect  of  weakness,  St.  Paul  is  explicit  as  to  his 
own  experience,^  which  in  general  character  is  that 
of  all  men.  It  matters  not  what  was  the  thorn  in  the 
flesh  of  which  he  speaks.  Whatever  it  was,  it  was 
felt  as  weakness.  In  his  spirit  he  felt  poverty;  he 
therein  bore  his  share  of  the  humiliation  of  Christ, 
filling  up  on  his  part  that  which  was  lacking  of  the 
afflictions  of  Christ.^  To  his  prayer  for  deliverance, 
he  received  the  answer  that  God's  strength  is  made 
perfect  in  weakness.  This  implies  not  merely  the 
remedial  effect  of  God's  strength;  it  implies  also 
that  weakness  is  appointed  by  God  as  a  necessary 
incident  to  the  perfection  of  character.     Had  it  been 

*  2  Corinthians,  V,  21.  Hebrews,  iv,  15;  vii,  26.  i  St.  Peter, 
ii,  22.      I  St.  John,  iii,  5. 

*  Psalm,  viii,  4-6.     Hebrews,  ii,  5-8. 

3  Hebrews,  ii,  11-18.  *  2  Corinthians,  xii,  7-10. 

®  Colossians,  i,  24. 


FULFILMENT  211 


merely  a  cross,  St.  Paul  might  have  confined  his 
attitude  to  that  of  acceptance;  but  he  jfinds  in  it 
more.  He  thenceforth  takes  pleasure  in  weaknesses, 
in  injuries,  in  necessities,  in  distresses,  for  Christ's 
sake;  he  glories  in  them,  that  the  power  of  Christ 
may  rest  upon  him.  Weakness  is  not  merely  God's 
opportunity.  It  is  his  method  and  means  for  elabo- 
rating a  nature  superior  to  that  which  would  be  pos- 
sible to  one  created  perfect  in  strength. 

Weaknesses  of  natural  character  therefore  are  to 
be  greeted;  not  as  something  in  themselves  good, 
but  as  occasion,  opportunity.  It  is  necessary  to  dis- 
tinguish always  between  acts  of  weakness,  and  the 
fact,  or  condition,  of  a  native  weakness  in  the  char- 
acter. The  act  is  culpable,  more  or  less,  for  it  re- 
sults from  the  cooperation  or  acquiescence  of  the 
will.  Where  the  will  is  pure,  the  weakness  cannot 
prevail;  and  the  very  fact  of  resistance  intensifies  the 
struggle  and  the  suffering.  As  Christ's  Will  not  to 
sin  was  absolute.  He  suffered  in  resistance  ^  beyond 
all  men;  but  His  example  shows  that,  if  utilized  by 
man  in  watchfulness  and  prayer,  suffering  is  God's 
opportunity  also  for  uplifting  to  heights  not  other- 
wise attainable.  "When  I  am  weak,  then  am  I 
strong."  Ordinary  experience  will  tell  us  that  no 
progress  is  harder  than  contention  with  a  native 
deficiency,  whether  of  courage,  or  of  gentleness,  or 
of  decision,  or  of  resoluteness,  or  in  anxiousness,  or 
in  over-confidence. 

There  are  many  oppositions  of  these  kinds;  but 
they  all  bear  the  common  stamp  of  weakness,  mani- 
^  St.  Luke,  xxii,  44.     Hebrews,  ii,  18;  iv,  15;  v,  7,  8. 


212         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

fested  outwardly  in  conduct.  There  is  no  sharper 
test  of  real  character  than  persistent  battling  with 
these  natural  infirmities;  and  persistence,  constancy, 
is  the  fruit  by  which  the  essential  goodness  of  the 
tree  is  known.  "He  that  goeth  on  his  way  weeping, 
but  bearing  forth  good  seed,  shall  doubtless  come 
again  with  joy  and  bring  his  sheaves  with  him."  * 
So  little  progress,  so  much  discouragement;  frequent 
outward  failure,  rare  gleams  of  success  in  spirit, 
however  acts  may  be  controlled;  but  still  going  on 
his  way,  not  halting,  nor  slacking  in  effort.  Earnest- 
ness such  as  this,  from  its  very  reality,  finds  it  im- 
possible to  reach  its  ideal,  but  in  the  end  it  will.  So 
Browning  writes : 

For  hence  —  a  paradox 
Which  comforts  while  it  mocks  — 
Shall  life  succeed  in  that  it  seems  to  fail. 

For  encouragement,  the  Christian  must  remember 
constantly  that  the  growth  is  not  of  himself,  but  of 
God.  It  is  the  outcome,  the  natural  development 
and  fruit  bearing,  the  fulfilment  of  the  Life  given 
him;  of  the  Life  of  Christ  within  him.  He  grows 
and  will  bear  fruit  as  a  branch  of  the  Vine; ^  and  the 
process  therefore  will  be  governed  by  the  laws  of 
normal  growth,  in  due  season,  ^ —  first  the  blade,  then 
the  ear,  then  the  full  corn.^  Perfectly  clear  intel- 
lectual apprehension  of  this  law  is  not  indeed  indis- 
pensable to  the  issue,  as  consciousness  is  not  essential 
to  the   life  of  an  organism;    but  when   understood 

*  Psalm,  cxxvi,  5,  6  (Psalter).       ^  St.  John,  xv,  1-6. 
^  Psalm,  i,  2,  3.  *  St.  Mark,  iv,  28,  29. 


FULFILMENT  213 


and  appreciated  the  light  of  good  cheer  is  shed  upon 
the  slowness  of  progress.  Comprehension  has  also 
the  advantage  which  intelligent  grasp  of  principles 
has  upon  effort,  that  of  skilled  work  over  unskilled, 
giving  direction  to  exertion  and  patience  to  waiting. 
So  the  husbandman  waiteth  for  the  fruits  of  the 
earth  and  has  long  patience  for  them,  till  he  receive 
the  early  and  the  later  rain.^  Patience  in  no  wise 
dispenses  from  labor,  for  spiritual  toil  is  the  condi- 
tion of  successful  spiritual  husbandry;  but  it  places 
the  longed-for  increase  where  St.  Paul  places  it,  — 
with  God.  His  is  the  life,  man's  the  tendance  only. 
Further,  one  who  has  realized  these  conditions  will 
be  perpetually  on  guard,  watching  for  the  advance, 
for  the  blade  and  the  ear,  seeing  in  them  not  the  re- 
sults of  his  own  work,  but  the  evidence  of  life  work- 
ing, cheering  him  with  the  hope  of  the  harvest,  of 
the  full  corn  in  due  season;  and  the  spirit  of  trust 
will  find  cause  for  thanksgiving,  in  evidences  grad- 
ual but  perceptible. 

Normal  healthy  life  is  unconscious  of  the  processes 
by  which  it  is  maintained  and  developed.  In  being, 
doing,  and  undergoing,  whether  pain  or  pleasure,  we 
are  conscious  of  living;  but  the  processes  of  physical 
life,  continuous  from  birth  to  death,  go  on  without 
necessary  consciousness,  and  in  function  are  inde- 
pendent of  our  will.  We  can  minister  to  them,  and 
must  do  so ;  but  ministration  is  not  life.  Only  when 
derangement  enters  do  the  vital  processes  force 
themselves  on  our  consciousness.    Of  these  processes, 

^  St.  James,  i,  2-4;  v,  7,  8.      i  Corinthians,  xv,  58.     Gala- 
tians,  vi,  9.     St.  Luke,  xxi,  19  (Revised  Version). 


214         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

growth  in  its  broadest  sense  is  the  leading  charac- 
teristic; and  growth  is  momentarily  imperceptible. 
We  see  that  a  child  or  plant  has  grown;  we  recog- 
nize that  change  has  taken  place  in  ourselves;  but, 
except  where  derangement  occurs,  it  is  the  result 
that  is  noted,  not  the  process.  It  is  quite  so  in  spirit- 
ual life.  We  are  conscious  of  derangements;  of 
temptation,  of  faults,  of  weakness;  but  we  are  not 
similarly  conscious  of  growing.  We  minister  by 
watchfulness,  by  sacraments,  prayer,  thanksgiving, 
—  by  all  means  of  intercourse  with  God,  —  as  to 
the  natural  body  by  care,  food,  surroundings;  but 
growth,  advanced  or  retarded  as  these  precautions 
are  observed  or  neglected,  continues  steadily  by 
virtue  of  the  inner  principle  of  life  —  union  with 
God  in  and  through  Jesus  Christ.  Then  from  time 
to  time  attention  is  arrested,  and  we  note  that  there 
has  been  growth.  We  wake  up,  as  it  were,  and  find 
advance  towards  likeness  to  God;  perhaps  as  the 
tiny  blade  when  it  first  breaks  through  the  soil,  and 
we  rejoice.  When  I  wake  up  after  Thy  likeness,  I 
shall  be  satisfied  with  it.^ 

It  is  good,  says  the  prophet,  that  a  man  bear  the 
yoke  in  his  youth;  that  he  both  hope  and  patiently 
wait  for  the  salvation  of  God.^  It  is  good,  for  youth 
is  strong  to  endure;  it  is  also  good,  because  youth 
especially  needs  discipline.  From  age,  more  or  less, 
will  naturally  be  expected  the  tokens  of  fulfilment; 
lapse  of  time  should  afford  greater  evidence  of 
growth.  But,  here  again,  fulfilment  of  life  must  be 
sought  within.  Men  light  a  candle,  said  our  Lord, 
^  Psalm,  xvii,  15  (Psalter).  ^  Lamentations,  iii,  26,  27. 


FULFILMENT  215 


and  set  it  on  a  candlestick,  that  they  who  enter  in 
may  see  the  Hght;  it  shineth  to  all  who  are  in  the 
house.^  Entering  in  is  the  condition.  God  enters  in, 
and  the  man  himself;  doubtless  also  the  great  cloud 
of  unseen  witnesses,^  and  those  on  earth  who  by  in- 
timacy and  sympathy  have  opportunity  to  see.  This 
light  is  the  recompense  of  faithfulness  continued  to 
old  age.  In  this  sense,  St.  John  twice  addresses  the 
old  under  the  title  of  "  fathers."  I  write  unto  you, 
fathers,  because  ye  know  Him  Who  is  from  the  be- 
ginning.^ This  is  their  fruitage  —  knowledge  of  God 
in  Christ;  the  knowledge  of  experience;  a  result 
which  St.  Peter  couples  with  growth  in  grace  as  the 
supreme  outcome  of  the  Life  of  the  Christian  :  Grow 
in  the  grace  and  knowledge  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour 
Jesus  Christ.^  In  logical  recognition  of  the  differing 
stages  of  life  St.  John  gives  a  very  different  charge 
to  those  in  the  prime  and  vigor  of  manhood;  to  whom 
the  burden  of  bodily  weakness  with  its  privilege  of 
rest  is  not  yet  come.  I  write  unto  you,  young  men, 
because  ye  are  strong,  and  the  Word  of  God  abideth 
in  you,  and  ye  have  overcome  the  evil  one.  The  word 
of  God  abiding  in  the  exercise  of  manhood's  strength 
carries  with  it  the  assurance  to  old  age  of  that  ad- 
vanced knowledge  of  God  which  is  life  and  peace. 

To  know  Christ  is  light,  which  grows  with  experi- 
ence.    In  Him  is  life,  and  the  life,  known,^  is  the 


^  St.  Luke,  viii,  16;  xi,  33.     St.  Matthew,  v,  15. 

^  I  Corinthians,  iv,  9.      Hebrews,  xii,  i. 

^  I  St.  John,  ii,  13,  14.  ^  2  St.  Peter,  iii,  18. 

^  Romans,  x,  14. 


2i6         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

light  of  men.^  I  am  the  Light  of  the  World.^  Nor 
is  it  wresting  the  difficult  words  of  the  prophet  from 
their  special  bearing  to  apply  them  to  the  end  of  life 
here  on  earth,  as  struggles  and  disappointments, 
perplexities  and  fears,  draw  to  a  close:  There  shall 
be  one  day  known  unto  the  Lord;  not  day  and  not 
night;  but  it  shall  come  to  pass  that  at  evening  time 
there  shall  be  light.^  Not  day,  and  not  night.  Not 
yet  the  perfected  vision  of  him  who  has  departed 
and  is  with  Christ,  but  yet  the  light  which  has  been 
shining  with  increasing  intensity,  "more  and  more," 
towards  the  perfect  day;^  intermediate,  as  it  were, 
between  the  starhght  of  Faith  ^  and  the  daylight  of 
His  appearing.^ 

Such  light  had  St.  Paul,  who  in  mid  career  labored 
lest  with  all  his  activities  for  Christ  he  might  be  a 
castaway;''  but  when  evening  time  came,  he  knew 
that  he  had  fought  a  good  fight,  and  won  the  crown.® 
The  heat  of  the  struggle,  when  men  are  strong  in 
youth,  needs  not  this  light  so  much  as  does  the 
feebleness  of  age;  nor  is  the  time  of  vigorous  action, 
preoccupied  with  activities  even  the  worthiest,  as 
fitted  for  the  calm  reflection  which  in  age  facilitates 
and  shelters  the  burning  of  the  flame.  There  is  a 
time  for  everything.  As  thy  day  so  shall  thy  strength 
be,^    proportionate  to  the  demands  upon  it.     I  will 

^  St.  John,  i,  4.      2  Corinthians,  iii,  18;   iv,  6. 

^  St.  John,  viii,  12;   ix,  5;  xii,  35,  36,  46. 

^  Zechariah,  xiv,  6,  7.  ^  Proverbs,  iv,  18. 

^  St.  Matthew,  ii,  i-io.      Revelation,  xxii,  16. 

®  Malachi,  iv,  2.     St.  Luke,  i,  78. 

'   I  Corinthians,  ix,  27.  ^  2  Timothy,  iv,  7,  8. 

*  Deuteronomy,  xxxiii,  25. 


FULFILMENT  217 


not  leave  thee  nor  forsake  thee.^  Action  needs  light 
to  guide  effort;  and  it  finds  it  in  the  example  and 
words  of  Christ,  as  it  finds  impulse  in  love  for  Christ. 
These  are  sufi^cient  for  the  time  of  battle;  a  war  cry 
when  the  dust  of  the  contest  darkens  the  sky,  and  the 
shoutings  of  the  contending  hosts  fill  the  air.  A  man 
then  can  but  snatch  his  moments  of  refreshment, 
seeking  "refuge  under  the  shadow  of  Thy  wings  until 
the  tyranny  of  combat  be  overpast."  ^  His  duty  is  in 
the  field,  wherever  by  the  Providence  of  God  he 
finds  himself  stationed. 

Old  age  is  one  of  the  stages  in  fulfilment.  It  is  a 
time  when  cessation  of  effort  in  measure  is  imposed; 
when  men  increasingly  rather  live  than  act,  in  the 
common  sense  of  the  word  "act."  But  living,  being, 
is  intrinsically  a  higher  condition  than  doing;  the 
life  is  more  than  the  meat;  as  the  man  is,  so  is  his 
strength.  Old  age  is  the  harvest  of  what  the  man  is ; 
the  reaping  of  what  he  has  become  during  the  period 
when  life  was  manifesting  itself  in  action.  As  he 
ceases  from  his  labors,  his  works  follow  him.  Char- 
acter achieved  becomes  fruition,  and  he  brings  forth 
more  abundantly,  sheds  light  greater  and  more  effect- 
ual, in  virtue  of  what  he  is  and  of  what  he  has  under- 
gone. The  light  is  for  him,  but  not  only  nor  chiefly 
for  him;  its  great  virtue  is  that  it  is  in  him.  It  is  the 
supreme  fulfilment  of  the  assurance,  My  strength  is 
made  perfect  in  weakness;  that  the  more  the  weak- 
ness, the  more  urgent  the  occasion,  the  greater  the 
opportunity  and  the  greater  the  compensating  power. 

^   Deuteronomy,  xxxi,  6.      Hebrews,  xiii,  5,  6. 
^  Psalm,  Ivii,  i  (Psalter). 


2i8         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

Let  it  not,  however,  be  imagined,  as  is  very  easily 
done,  that  the  perfecting  of  strength  in  weakness 
means  the  removal  of  weakness;  the  substitution, 
as  it  were,  of  strength  for  weakness.  The  weakness 
of  age  is  physical  weakness,  the  culmination  of  which 
is  the  last  weakness  —  St.  Paul's  "last  enemy"  ^  — 
death.  Death  is  the  extreme  expression  of  w^eakness. 
Upon  it  Jesus  Christ  fastens  to  illustrate  the  value 
of  weakness  as  a  means  to  fulfilment:  Except  a 
grain  of  wheat  fall  into  the  earth  and  die,  it  abideth 
by  itself  alone;  but  if  it  die,  it  beareth  much  fruit.^ 
Weakness  of  age  shows  itself  in  body,  brain,  and 
nerves.  It  is  incurable;  and  the  resultant  conditions 
will  seek  to  manifest  themselves  in  inward  spirit 
and  in  outward  conduct,  constituting  an  inevitable 
struggle.  As  the  physical  energies  slacken,  the  forces 
dependent  upon  them,  as  well  resistant  as  aggressive, 
relax;  and  the  natural  desire  increases  that  external 
circumstances  shall  conform  to  those  of  the  rich  man 
in  the  parable :  Soul,  take  thine  ease;  all  things  now 
are  so  that  rest  is  assured  for  the  years  that  remain.^ 
But  the  time  for  rest  is  not  yet,*  nor  is  here  the  place. 
The  promise  to  the  present  distress  is  not  rest,  much 
less  ease,  but  peace  ^  and  inward  strength.^ 

The  greater  the  force  of  spiritual  character  ac- 
quired in  life,  the  more  arduous  is  this  conflict,  the 
severer  the  trial.  Of  the  highest  spiritual  character, 
of  the  spotless  human  nature  of  Jesus  Christ,  it  is 

*  I  Corinthians,  xv,  26.  ^  St.  John,  xii,  24. 

^  St.  Luke,  xii,  16-20.  *  Hebrews,  iv,  i-il. 

®  St.  John,  xiv,  27;  xvi,  33.     Philippians,  iv,  7. 
^  Isaiah,  xl,  28-31.     2  Corinthians,  iv,  8-16. 


FULFILMENT  219 


particularly  written  that,  being  tried,  —  tempted,  — 
He  suffered.'^  His  Peace,  the  Peace  of  God,  passeth 
understanding^  for  the  very  reason  that,  while  we 
know  not  how  it  comes,  it  abides  and  sustains  in  the 
extremity  of  trial;  such  as  His  Passion,  when  the  in- 
tensity of  suffering,  mental  and  physical,  of  repug- 
nance to  the  experience  before  Him,  did  not  prevail 
over  serenity  and  self-possession.  The  stages  of  the 
struggle,  marked  by  such  expressions  as,  "Ye  shall 
be  scattered,  .  .  .  and  leave  Me  alone;  and  yet  I  am 
not  alone,  because  the  Father  is  with  Me;"^  or 
again,  "  Peace  I  leave  with  you ;  My  Peace  I  give  unto 
you :  not  as  the  world  giveth,  give  I  unto  you,"  ^  show 
the  source  and  character  of  the  peace,  that  it  was  of 
God,  and  not  that  tranquilHty  of  ease  which  the  world 
takes  for  peace. 

In  the  forsaking,  and  in  the  bodily  exhaustion  of 
that  night,  —  as  of  the  fasting  in  the  wilderness,  — 
Jesus  Christ  learned  by  experience  the  weaknesses 
which  are  characteristic  of  age,  although  He  did  not 
live  to  be  old.  Tempted  thus  in  all  respects  like  us, 
He  triumphed;  being  therein  made  perfect.  This 
was  the  supreme  test  of  weakness  and  of  character, 
to  which  for  His  brethren  old  age  with  its  partings 
and  infirmities  constitutes  the  nearest  parallel.  And 
it  can  be  readily  appreciated  that  while  on  the  one 
hand  trial  —  weakness  —  abounds,  on  the  other, 
grace  —  strength  —  will  much  more  abound ;  ^  for 
not  only  will  God's  strength  then  be  made  perfect, 

^  Hebrews,  ii,  18;  iv,  15.       ^  Philippians,  iv,  7. 
^  St.  Johiij  xvi,  32.  *  Ibid.,  xiv,  27. 

^  Romans,  v,  20. 


220         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

but  in  a  faithful  follower  He  will  find  an  instrument 
more  highly  tempered  than  ever  before,  wherewith 
to  work  His  Will  to  perfection  of  character.  It  is  the 
time  of  harvest;  the  full  corn  following  the  blade 
and  the  ear. 

Consider  what  the  strength  of  the  young  man, 
exercised  in  its  day,  brings  to  old  age.  No  chastening, 
says  the  Apostle,  seems  for  the  present  joyous,  but 
grievous;  nevertheless,  afterwards,  it  worketh  the 
acceptable  fruit  of  righteousness  to  him  who  is  exer- 
cised thereby.^  Character  strengthened  by  discipline 
is  a  familiar  thought  and  a  not  infrequent  experi- 
ence; but  in  the  Life  of  the  Christian  there  has  been 
more  and  deeper  than  discipline.  There  has  been  the 
process  of  spiritual  life  working  in  and  through 
repeated  endeavors;  season  succeeding  season,  as 
year  succeeds  year  in  the  natural  life.  Each  has 
brought  its  allotted  measure  of  advance  on  the  lines 
laid  down  by  the  providential  ordering  of  God; 
fidelity  to  which,  in  watchfulness  and  prayer,  gives 
accuracy  and  precision  to  the  efforts  of  the  husband- 
man. Rain  and  sunshine,  the  fit  symbols  of  God's 
part,^  the  appointed  sorrow  and  joy,  success  and 
disappointment,  have  done  their  alternate  work,  sec- 
onded by  that  diligent  care  which  St.  Paul  speaks  of 
as  planting  and  watering.^ 

As  each  period  passes,  and  task  accomplished  is 
succeeded  by  task  to  be  done,  the  past  sinks  into  the 
ground  of  character,  enriching  the  soil;  so  that 
product  may  increase  from  thirty-fold  to  sixty  and 

^  Hebrews,  xii,  ii.  ^  St.  Matthew,  v,  45. 

^  I  Corinthians,  iii,  5-7. 


FULFILMENT  221 


an  hundred  in  the  coming  days.  Progress  arrested 
by  some  obstacle,  against  which  fixity  of  purpose  has 
seemed  to  press  in  vain,  has  but  been  as  one  may 
see  a  stream  laden  with  fertilizing  soil  backed  up  by 
the  rise  of  the  river  to  which  it  is  tributary,  and 
thereby  in  quiescence  overflowing  its  own  borders, 
as  does  the  Nile,  until  its  valley  is  enriched  thrice 
and  fourfold  by  the  deposits,  which  but  for  the  seem- 
ing adversity  would  have  been  swept  fruitlessly  down 
and  lost,  —  the  perfect  work  of  patience  ^  symbolized. 
Shakespeare  has  told  us,  "  Sweet  are  the  uses  of  ad- 
versity;" but  it  is  clearer  still  that  patience  thus 
may  enrich  the  soul,  not  by  perseverance  merely, 
but  by  simple  endurance  in  tarrying  the  Lord's 
leisure.^ 

To  such  gain  age  is  heir  when  the  strength  of 
manhood  has  been  given,  as  St.  John  expresses,  to 
nourishing  the  word  of  God  abiding  within,  and  to  re- 
sistance to  the  evil  without.^  To  the  peculiar  work 
of  age,  to  the  closing  season  of  the  many  which  have 
passed  over  the  man's  head,  and  died,  are  consigned 
two  specific  tasks;  common  to  all  the  old,  though 
varying  in  application  to  each  man,  as  God  shall  see 
what  each  needs  that  he  may  bring  his  fruit  to  per- 
fection. These  two  tasks  are  summed  up  in  the 
words  of  Jesus  Christ  to  the  Apostles,  after  He  had 
fed  the  multitudes  with  the  few  loaves  and  fishes;^ 


^  St.  James,  i,  4. 

^  Psalm,  xxvii,  16  (Psalter);  xxxvii,  3-8. 
^  I  St.  John,  ii,  14. 

*  St.  Matthew,  xiv,  13-21;    xv,  32-38.     St.  Mark,  vi,  32-44; 
viii,  1-9.     St.  Luke,  ix,  10-17. 


222         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

themselves  an  apt  simile  of  the  weakness  of  means, 
in  which  Power  finds  occasion  to  make  perfect. 
"Gather  up  the  fragments  that  remain,  that  nothing 
be  lost."  ^  For  it  must  be  recognized  that  what  re- 
mains of  action  to  old  age,  as  compared  with  the  prime 
of  life,  is  only  fragments ;  but  also  that  fragments  do 
remain,  and  in  fruitfulness  may  be  more  than  ever, 
because  the  period  is  emphatically  that  of  harvest. 
Moreover,  fruitfulness  —  the  increase  —  is  not  of 
man,  but  of  God.  To  man  therefore  pertains  only 
the  diligence  of  gathering  up;  to  God  the  results. 
So,  in  the  miracles  referred  to,  the  increase  was  of 
Christ;  the  gathering  of  the  fragments  He  committed 
to  the  Apostles.  This  has  ever  since  remained  the 
function  of  the  ministry;  the  history  of  Christendom 
is  the  gathering  up  the  fragments  remaining  over 
from  the  Life  and  Death  and  Resurrection  of  its 
Leader. 

In  the  spirit  of  this  injunction,  patience  makes 
upon  age  a  twofold  demand.  The  growth  of  infirm- 
ity, the  decline  of  power  to  act,  mentally  or  physi- 
cally, must  be  accepted;  not  merely  submitted  to, 
not  merely  acquiesced  in,^  but  taken  to  one's  self  by 
an  act  of  the  will,  choosing  to  have  that  which  God 
has  appointed.  But,  while  thus  accepting,  there 
must  be  care  not  to  give  over  effort  up  to  the  strength 
that  remains.  Here  patience  will  manifest  itself 
actively  in  continuous,  quiet,  persistent  endeavor. 
Decay  is  commonly  gradual;  much  may  still  be 
done,  when  most  no  longer  can. 

Encouragement,  too,  may  be  found  in  the  thought 

^  St.  John,  vi,  12.  ^  Ante,  pp.  60-62. 


FULFILMENT  223 


so  often  repeated :  that  the  crown  of  success  is  not 
doing,  but  being.  I  AM^  was  the  Name  under 
which  God  revealed  Himself  to  the  older  dispensa- 
tion. Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Spirit,  the  Name  ^ 
under  which  He  has  made  Himself  known  to  Chris- 
tians, is  also  an  expression  of  Being;  an  expansion, 
a  growth  in  Revelation,  but  still  testifying  less  what 
God  does  than  what  He  is.  The  history  of  Creation 
—  and  of  Redemption  —  is  latent  in  the  Name,  is 
the  outcome  of  the  Being.  That  He  is  what  He  is,  is 
the  supreme  glory  of  God;  when  He  speaks  of  Him- 
self as  Love,  He  says  not  only  I  have  love,  or  I  show 
love,  but  I  am  Love.^  Man,  created  in  the  image  of 
God,  moves  on  in  his  proper  order  to  a  like  perfection 
of  being,  to  which  acts  indeed  will  not  be  wanting, 
but  of  which  they  will  be  not  the  essence  —  the 
being  —  but  the  result.  Thus  St.  Paul  says.  We  are 
created  in  Christ  Jesus  for  good  works,  which  God 
afore  prepared  that  we  should  walk  in  them;  but  he 
precedes  this  declaration  by  stating  the  fact  from 
which  efficiency  is  derived.  "We  are  God's  work- 
manship, created,"  etc.^  That  is,  being  what  we 
are,  or  shall  be,  through  God's  work  in  us,  fitting 
instruments  fashioned  for  His  purposes,  we  shall  do 
those  things  which  He  has  prepared  for  us. 

This  purpose  of  God,  this  antecedent  work,  we 
may  frustrate,  as  well  as  fulfil.  Our  wills  He  will 
not  coerce;  if  we  will  not.  He  will  create  another 
instrument  to  take  the  place  we  refuse.  Neverthe- 
less, it  remains  true:    Be,  and  you  will  do;    for  it  is 

^  Exodus,  ill,  13,  14.  ^  St.  Matthew,  xxviii,  19. 

^  I  St.  John,  iv,  7-16.  *  Ephesians,  ii,  10. 


224         THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

not  you  who  work,  but  the  Spirit  of  God  working  in 
you.^  But  we  shall  not  all  do  the  same  thing.  There 
are  differences  of  ministrations,  and  the  same  Lord;  ^ 
the  same  One  Workman  working  through  many 
men  and  in  many  ways.  This  evident  fact,  of  the 
numerous  kinds  of  godly  activities  which  character- 
ize the  spiritual  as  well  as  the  natural  order,  St.  Paul 
takes  ^  as  the  prelude  to  his  famous  exposition  of  the 
one  spirit,  of  the  one  way,  which  consecrates  all,  —  the 
inner  frame  of  mind  and  purpose  which  alone  begets 
and  hallows  all  acceptable  acts,  —  Love. 

With  youth,  with  life's  prime,  with  old  age,  and 
with  periods  of  history,  it  is  as  with  individuals. 
Each  has  its  appointed  work ;  and  each  will  fulfil  its 
work,  and  can  fulfil  it,  only  as  it  nourishes  the  inner 
spirit  of  love,  to  God  and  man.  Where  this  inner 
spirit  is  found,  there  need  be  no  fear  but  that  the  ex- 
ternal work  will  be  found  also,  and  will  be  fulfilled 
in  proportion  to  the  love.  That  the  hearts  of  kings 
are  in  the  hands  of  God  as  the  rivers  of  water,^  is 
but  a  conspicuous  declaration  of  a  general  truth,  not 
confined  to  the  eminent.  It  finds  reiteration  in  the 
same  Book :   In  all  thy  ways  acknowledge  Him,  and 


^  St.  Matthew,  x,  20.  St.  Luke,  xii,  12.  i  Corinthians,  iii,  9; 
xii,  6.  ^  Ibid.^  xii,  4-1 1. 

^  I  Corinthians,  xii.  This  chapter  is  not  to  be  cited  merely 
textually,  but  taken  with  Chapter  xiii  as  a  whole,  leading  up  through 
activities  to  the  indispensable  spirit  within;  whether  by  the  formal 
design  of  the  Apostle,  or  by  the  irresistible  logic  of  his  thought. 
However  regarded  in  these  respects,  it  remains  a  consummate  ex- 
ample of  the  Holy  Ghost  working  in  and  through  man.  The  flow 
of  thought  is  as  irresistible  as  though  the  Spirit  held  the  pen,  not 
the  man.  *  Proverbs,  xxi,  i. 


FULFILMENT  225 


He  will  direct  thy  paths. ^  If  the  will  be  given,  He 
will  do  the  rest;  for  the  will,  the  inner  disposition, 
alone  is  beyond  His  power.  Only  the  man  can  give 
that.  So  it  is  the  inner  spirit,  variously  called  the 
heart  and  the  will,  which  is  decisive.  Keep  thy 
heart  above  all  keeping,  for  out  of  it  are  the  issues 
of  Hfe.2 

That  the  heart  of  a  man  should  be  thus  in  the 
hand  of  God  as  a  river  of  water,  to  be  turned  whither 
He  will,  as  the  rivers  of  Nature  are  turned  and 
shaped  in  their  course  by  the  orderings  of  the  ground 
through  which  they  flow,  is  the  highest  fulfilment; 
for  it  is  the  complete  surrender  of  the  will  to  Him. 
This  does  not  exclude  eff^ort  of  any  kind;  careful 
(if  prayerful)  thought,  consideration,  even  cut  and 
dried  planning,  the  "rough  hewing''  of  Shakespeare; 
but  it  does  expect  from  Another  a  shaping  of  one's 
purposes,  of  the  inner  life,  which  in  unconsciousness 
shall  have  somewhat  in  common  with  the  growth  of 
a  plant.  "Like  a  green  olive  tree  in  the  house  of 
God;  my  trust  is  in  the  tender  mercy  of  God,  for 
ever  and  ever."  ^  "What  I  am  doing  thou  knowest 
not  now;  thou  shalt  know  hereafter."  ^  The  recon- 
ciling feature,  of  this  unconscious  providential  de- 
velopment with  perpetual  conscious  effort,  is  daily 
watchfulness  to  do  at  each  instant  what  is  seen  to  be 
right.  The  way  is  open,  for  it  is  Jesus  Christ;  His 
acts  and  His  words,  as  applicable  to  the  present  case. 
This  is  "Watch  and  Pray."    This  is  also  ploughing, 


^  Proverbs,  iii,  6.  ^  Ibid.y  iv,  23. 

3  Psalm,  Hi,  8.  *  St.  John,  xiii,  7. 

IS 


226         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

planting,  watering;  but  the  increase  is  of  God,  not 
of  us,  and  so  is  the  guidance  —  the  way. 

Thus  watching,  that  which  may  befall  us  in  the 
way,  whether  joy,  or  sorrow,  or  pain,  will  not  seem 
to  us  chance,  nor  purposeless.  Love  underlies  each 
experience.  "All  things,"  says  the  Apostle,  "are 
working  together  for  good  to  them  that  love  God,  to 
them  who  are  called  according  to  His  purpose."  ^ 
All  things,  however  slight.  Jesus  Christ  Himself 
said.  The  very  hairs  of  your  head  are  all  numbered;  ^ 
and  if  the  expression  be  thought  figurative,  it  cannot 
mean  less  than  that  the  smallest  incidents  which 
touch  us  sensibly  have  their  purpose.  He  to  whom 
such  come  is  being  "called  by  them  according  to 
God's  purposes."  And  the  called  are  no  select 
minority,  or  majority,  few  or  many,  arbitrarily 
chosen.  Each  one  to  whom  a  condition,  or  a  cir- 
cumstance, or  an  event,  comes,  is  called  thereby  to 
a  development,  which  in  God's  purpose  is  at  least 
the  individual's  full  redemption  into  the  glorious 
liberty  of  the  children  of  God ;  ^  into  conformity  to 
the  image  of  His  Son.  God's  purposes  do  not 
change;  but  man  can  frustrate  them  in  so  far  as  they 
mean  his  personal  welfare,  because  for  that  the  co- 
operation of  his  personal  will  is  needed. 

As  St.  Paul  on  the  one  hand  speaks  of  himself  as 
separated  from  his  mother's  womb  and  called  ^  for 
the  specific  work  which  he  performed,  so  on  the  other 
he  declares  a  calling  general  to  all:    that  God  now 


*  Romans,  viii,  28-30.  ^  St.  Matthew,  x,  29,  30. 

^  Romans,  viii,  18-24.  *  Galatians,  i,  15,  16. 


FULFILMENT  227 


calleth  all  men  everywhere  to  repent;  ^  that  it  is  His 
will  that  all  men  should  be  saved  ;^  that  He  is  not 
willing  that  any  should  perish,  but  that  all  should 
come  to  repentance.^  This  general  call  embraced 
St.  Paul;  the  specific  call  to  him  also  has  its  counter- 
part in  each  life,  and  can  be  recognized  sufficiently, 
if  there  be,  as  in  him,  the  will  to  look ;  to  think  of  the 
man's  part  "^  in  the  light  of  his  natural  gifts  and  of  the 
conditions  which  he  finds  in  and  about  him. 

To  reconcile  the  realities  of  man's  will  and  God's 
control  is  difficult;  but  less  difficult  than  at  first 
appears.  The  will  is  ours  absolutely,  irrevocably; 
a  gift  God  has  given  and  will  not  recall.  But  it  is 
the  sum  of  His  surrender  to  us.  He  has  not  in  like 
manner  conceded  to  us  the  power  to  carry  will  into 
effect.  He  may  indeed  permit  such  effect,  and  often 
does ;  the  evil  will  may  embody  itself  in  the  evil  act, 
to  the  injury  of  one's  self  or  of  others.  But  permis- 
sion is  not  abdication;  and  while  on  the  one  hand 
His  overruhng  may  leave  of  the  evil  will  nothing  but 
the  ineffectual  desire,  so  its  effects,  when  allowed,  are 
still  in  the  hands  of  God,  to  bring  good  out  of  evil. 
Probably,  no  thoughtful  Hfe  will  have  failed  to  see 
such  over-ruling,  —  good  coming  out  of  bad.  If 
Joseph's  eldest  brother  had  succeeded  in  the  purpose 
of  delivering  him  out  of  the  hands  of  their  other 
brethren,^  their  evil  will  would  have  remained  in  all 


*  Acts,  xvii,  30,  31. 

^  I  Timothy,  ii,  3,  4.     Titus,  ii,  II. 
^  2  Peter,  iii,  9. 

*  Romans,  xii,  3-8.     i  Corinthians,  xii.     I  Peter,  iv,  10,  11 
'  Genesis,  xxxvii,  18-24,  29,  30. 


228         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

consequences  to  their  inner  life,  their  characters. 
He  failed;  the  ill  will  took  effect  in  act ;  but  the  issue 
was  over-ruled  for  good  by  God.^  Evil  intent  is 
never  from  Him ;  no  evil  of  the  will  comes  from  Him ; 
but  He  reserves  control  over  results.  These  remain 
irresistibly  within  the  order  of  His  Providence,  and 
we  are  therefore  justified  in  regarding  them  as  sent 
by  Him,  while  we  may  not  impute  to  Him  the  evil 
purpose  in  which  they  originated.^  To  the  sufferer 
they  are  God's  chastening,  and  his  own  opportunity. 
If  it  be  thus  with  the  evil  will,  how  much  more  with 
the  good,  where  the  wills  of  God  and  of  man  work 
not  contrary,  but  together;  where  the  river  of  life, 
to  recur  to  the  metaphor  of  the  Psalmist,^  turns 
and  deflects  obediently  to  the  ordering  which  it  finds 
in  each  region  through  which  its  current  flows.  The 
wisdom  of  God  and  the  power  of  God,  by  enlighten- 
ing the  intellect,  by  quickening  motives,  by  ordering 
circumstances,  —  the  valley  of  the  river's  course,  — 
can  affect  the  purposes  of  man,  when  they  are  indif- 
ferent; or  change  them  when  evil.  Man  thus  deals 
with  man  continually,  by  elucidating  truth,  by  ap- 
pealing to  the  sense  of  right  and  wrong,  by  '  onstitut- 
ing  conditions  which  operate  upon  motives.  How 
much  more  God  in  His  greater  wisdom.  His  greater 
knowledge  of  the  individual  heart,  His  power  over 
issues.     Yet  neither  man  nor  God  can  change  the 


^  Genesis,  xlv,  4-8;    1,  20. 

^  The  same  line  of  thought  appHes  to  results  from  human 
neglects :  neglect  of  laws  of  health,  bad  sanitation,  imprudent  or 
ungodly  marriages,  etc. 

^  Ante,  p.  225.     Psalm,  cxxvi,  4. 


FULFILMENT  229 


will  if  it  persist  in  evil,  when  in  it  desire  or  self- 
interest  prevails  over  right  and  truth. 

As  God  thus  makes  use  of  us  rather  than  we  our- 
selves work;  as  work  is  the  outcome  of  being;  we 
are  not  to  harass  ourselves  on  the  score  of  activities, 
provided  our  conscience  bear  faithful  witness  that  we 
are  conforming  our  inward  spirit  to  the  commands 
and  example  of  Christ.  So  far  as  known  to  us, 
Christ's  activities  for  thirty  years  were  confined  to 
the  home  and  the  handicraft.  Even  Him  God  had 
in  training  for  the  appointed  time.  The  greatest  of 
the  anti-types  of  Christ,  Moses,  so  far  as  known  to  us, 
until  he  was  forty  led  the  life  of  an  eminent  subject 
in  the  court  of  a  king.  For  forty  years  more  he  was 
a  nomad  shepherd.^  In  the  one  occupation  as  in  the 
other  he  was  in  training.  The  processes  we  do  not 
know;  the  results  we  do.  The  conditions  antecedent 
and  subsequent  warrant  the  inference  that  the  inner 
man  was  the  sphere  of  development;  to  which  his 
personal  will  cooperated  faithfully,  by  simple  heed- 
fulness  and  obedience  to  present  duty  in  either  posi- 
tion to  which  the  orderings  of  God  had  called  him. 

The  incident  which  led  to  his  flight,  the  prompt 
slaying  of  an  Egyptian  oppressor,  possibly  also  the 
manner  of  his  interference  between  two  of  his  own 
race,  which  was  resented,^  indicate  a  peremptoriness 
of  temper,  a  hastiness  of  act,  unsuited  to  the  difficult 
role  to  which  he  was  destined,  to  be  the  leader  of  a 
headstrong,  petulant  people  from  bondage  to  national 
life.  His  native  impetuousness  broke  out  once  in 
the  wanderings,  and  was  chastised  instantly  bv  ex- 
^  Acts,  vii,  23,  30.  ^  Exodus,  ii,  11-15. 


230         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

elusion  from  entrance  into  the  promised  land.^  The 
sternness  of  the  warning  may  indicate  his  need  of 
constant  self-control;  but,  in  general,  the  result  of 
his  forty  years  of  frustration  and  of  postponement 
was  a  character  concerning  which  we  are  told  that 
he  was  very  meek,  patient  and  unresentful,  above  all 
men.  When  thus  fitted  inwardly  for  his  task,  the 
call  to  great  action  came.  We  are  apt  to  overlook 
that  before  his  flight  he  had  undertaken  to  do  just 
that  which  he  ultimately  did ;  ^  but  his  act  was  pre- 
mature, he  himself  yet  unripe,  and  probably  the  con- 
ditions also.  He  must  stand  and  wait  for  forty  years ; 
but  he  was  serving  then  as  truly  as  when  he  faced 
Pharaoh,  or  led  the  people  out.  Character  was  ma- 
turing until  he  had  become  fully  God's  workman- 
ship ;  not  only  created  from  the  first  unto  good  works, 
but  further  fashioned  into  an  instrument  "meet  for 
the  Master's  use."  ^ 

This  is  the  expression  used  by  St.  Paul  to  his 
disciple  Timothy  with  reference  to  his  fitness  for  the 
office  to  which  he  had  been  called,  that  of  a  bishop, 
a  chief  administrator.  But  while  the  Apostle's  charge 
deals  with  questions  of  administration,^  the  weight  of 
his  monitions  rests  upon  personal  fitness,  the  cultiva- 
tion of  the  inner  spirit,  studying  thereby  to  present 
himself  approved  unto  God,  a  workman  that  needed 
not  to  be  ashamed,  holding  a  straight  course  in  the 
word  of  truth. ^    Conduct  is  to  spring  from  inner  dis- 

*  Numbers,  xx,  10-13,  24;  xxvii,  12-14-  Deuteronomy,  iii, 
23-26.  ^  Acts,  vii,  22-29.  ^  2  Timothy,  ii,  21. 

*  I  Timothy,  ii,  iii,  iv,  v.     2  Timothy,  iv,  1-5. 
^  Ibid.,  ii,  15. 


FULFILMENT  231 


positions;  the  evil  to  be  shunned  and  the  good  to  be 
cultivated  are  alike  within.^  St.  Paul  intimates  much 
the  same  concerning  himself  and  his  own  course. 
God  has  separated  him  to  his  appointed  work  from 
his  mother's  womb,  and  called  him  by  His  grace  ^ 
to  labors,  activities,  which  exceeded  those  of  all  the 
other  apostles ;  ^  but  when  the  revelation  came,  the 
call  to  go  to  the  Gentiles,  after  an  immediate  brief 
period  of  fervent  preaching  on  the  scene  of  his  con- 
version,^ —  apparently  to  Jews  only,  —  he  sought 
solitude.^ 

The  magnitude  of  the  summons  might  well  over- 
whelm him.  Even  the  Twelve  had  not  risen  yet  to 
the  conception  of  a  world-wide  conversion  of  the 
Gentiles,^  which  was  now  imparted  to  one  who  up  to 
this  moment  had  been  a  Pharisee  of  the  Pharisees.^ 
A  boundless  mission  opened  before  his  eyes;  and, 
like  Moses,  he  had  on  the  human  side  natural  gifts 
and  special  training  to  fit  him  for  it.  But,  unlike 
Moses  at  the  first,  he  waited  to  test  the  spirit  within 
him.'^  On  the  one  hand  he  conferred  not  with  flesh 
and  blood,  who  might  have  dissuaded  him;  on  the 
other  he  trusted  not  the  first  impulse  immediately. 
He  went  away  to  Arabia,  the  scene  also  of  Moses* 
discipline,  —  as  of  Elijah's,  —  and  there,  alone  with 

^  I  Timothy,  i,  3-6,  18-20;  iv,  6-16;  v,  22;  vi,  11-16.    2  Tim- 
othy, i,  3-10,  14;  ii,  1-3,  7,  8,  11-13,  22-26;  iii,  14-17. 
^  Galatians,  i,  15-17. 

^  I  Corinthians,  xv,  9-1 1.     2  Corinthians,  xi,  21-32. 
*  Acts,  ix,  19-25. 

^  Ihid.,  X,  13-16,  28,  29;  xi,  2;  XV,  6-1 1. 
®  Ihid.y  xxii,  3-6;   xxiii,  6;   xxvi,  4,  5.    Philippians,  iii,  5,  6. 
^  I  St.  John,  iv,  I. 


232         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

God,  subjected  himself  to  the  teaching  and  the  prepa- 
ration, to  the  ascertainment  of  God's  purpose  which 
awaits  all  those  who  so  seek.  The  duration  of  this 
withdrawal  is  uncertain ;  but  that  it  was  one  of  ex- 
ternal inactivity  seems  certain,  for  we  hear  nothing 
of  fruits  of  ministry  in  Arabia.^ 

It  may  be  remarked  that  this  retirement  from  active 
life,  voluntary  on  the  first  occasion,  was  afterwards 
imposed  by  God  in  the  midst  of  the  Apostle's  mis- 
sionary career.  Two  years  of  enforced  seclusion  in 
Caesarea,^  followed  by  two  of  restraint  in  Rome,^ 
gave  long  time  for  thought.  They  were  not  unprofit- 
able years,  even  in  outward  action ;  but  they  involved 
complete  suspension  of  activities  in  the  common 
meaning  of  the  word,  and  aflPorded  abundant  oppor- 
tunity to  search  and  cultivate  the  inner  spirit,  to  make 
himself  more  and  more  meet  for  use  by  the  Master. 
It  was  fit  that  it  should  be  so.  The  disciple  is  not 
above  his  Master;^  and  the  Master,  for  His  own 
training,  before  He  began  even  to  preach  personally, 
had  retired  voluntarily  into  the  wilderness,  in  soli- 
tude.^ So  also  in  the  first  expansion  of  His  personal 
mission,  the  selection  of  the  Twelve,^  to  go  out  from 
Him  as  from  a  centre,  analogous  to  the  call  to  the 
Gentiles  proceeding  from  Jerusalem,^  He  passed  the 
night  before  in  the  mountain,  alone,  in  prayer. 

*  See  note  at  end  of  this  chapter. 

2  Acts,  xxiv,  23-27.  ^  Ibid.,  xxviii,  30,  31. 

*  St.  Matthew,  X,  24.  St.  Luke,  vi,  40.  St.  John,  xiii,  16;  xv, 
20. 

^  St.  Matthew,  iii,  13 -iv,  17. 

®  St.  Luke,  vi,  12-15;  ix,  1-6,  10. 

^  Ibid.y  xxiv,  46-49.     Acts,  i,  4-8. 


FULFILMENT  233 


The  particular  incidents  are  simply  striking  illus- 
trations of  the  habitual  tenor  of  the  life  of  Christ; 
the  stream  of  thought  and  communion  which  through- 
out His  recorded  career,  brimful  of  activities  as  this 
was,  came  continually  to  the  surface,  betraying  the 
perpetual  current  beneath.  The  testimony  to  the 
inner  life  is  summed  up  in  the  words :  He  who  sent 
Me  hath  not  left  Me  alone,  for  I  do  always  those 
things  that  please  Him.  Ye  shall  leave  Me  alone; 
and  yet  I  am  not  alone,  because  the  Father  is  with 
Me.^  The  inward  communion  is  inseparably  linked 
with  the  outward  action;  and  so  in  the  moment  of 
final  mortal  weakness,  at  the  instant  of  death,  the 
outward  word,  the  only  action  then  possible  to  Him 
who  was  crucified  through  weakness,  reflects  the 
same  inward  state :  It  is  finished.  Father,  into  Thy 
hands  I  commend  My  spirit.^ 

It  is  sufficient  to  the  disciple  to  be  as  his  Master. 
With  them,  too,  it  is  within  that  the  copious  harvest 
—  God's  workmanship  —  will  be  realized.  In  the 
weakness  of  age,  in  the  failure  of  power  for  external 
action,  the  energies  concentrated  within  would  natu- 
rally be  more  productive  of  progressive  being.  The 
gathering  of  the  fragments  was  the  closing  act  of 
Christ's  miracle;  by  that  it  was  finished;  and  it  is 
to  be  noted  that  the  fragments  from  the  few  loaves 
and  fishes,  filling  twelve  and  seven  baskets  in  the 
several  instances,  much  exceeded  the  original  pro- 
vision from  which  they  were  left.  From  the  ancient 
Scriptures  we  have  the  Hke  strong  expression  of  the 


^  St.  John,  viii,  28,  29;  xvi,  32. 

^  Ibid.,  xix,  30.     St.  Luke,  xxiii,  46. 


234         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

relative  value  of  the  fragment.  A  thousand  years  in 
Thy  sight  are  but  as  yesterday  ^  —  as  one  day.  What 
contrast  between  much  and  little  more  emphatic,  or 
more  illustrative,  than  of  one  day  with  ten  centuries  ? 

We  may  safely  apply  these  parallels  to  old  age, 
expecting  that  to  the  conclusion  of  this  earthly  period 
of  the  unending  Life,  should  be  reahzed  in  the  highest 
degree  the  assurance,  We  are  God's  workmanship. 
From  more  advanced  being  may  be  expected  more 
abundant  and  better  fruit.  This  is  natural,  too,  for 
increasing  infirmities  give  increasing  occasion,  op- 
portunity, for  submissive  acceptance,  thus  favoring 
growth  in  grace,  which  is  not  of  ourselves,  but  the 
gift  of  God,^  the  perfected  work  of  patience;  ^  and 
also  there  is  more  leisure  —  enforced  —  for  quiet 
thought,  thought  passive  and  receptive,  that  highest 
thought  in  which  rather  God  speaks  than  man  re- 
flects, —  the  thought  of  Inspiration. 

So  the  old  may  say  truly,  The  lot  has  fallen  unto 
me  in  a  good  ground ;  yea,  I  have  a  goodly  heritage.* 
The  whole  tenor  of  this  psalm  (xvi)  is  that  of  a  con- 
secrated past  reaping  the  harvest  of  Hfe's  ending. 
"Jehovah,  Thou  art  my  God,  I  have  no  good  beyond 
Thee.  Thou  art  the  portion  of  my  inheritance,  and 
of  my  cup.  I  have  set  Thee  always  before  me."  Ap- 
plicable primarily  to  Christ,  it  tells  the  experience  of 
one  who  was  His  follower  beforehand;  who,  like 
Abraham,  rejoiced  to  see  His  day,  who  saw  it  and  was 

^  Psalm,  xc,  4;  quoted  in  2  St.  Peter,  iii,  8. 

^  Ephesians,  ii,  8,  9.     Galatians,  ii,  15,  16,  21.    Acts,  xv,  II. 

^  St.  James,  i,  4.     St.  Luke,  xxi,  19. 

*  Psalm,  xvi,  6. 


FULFILMENT  235 


glad.^  From  that  gladness  sprang  the  unconscious 
prophecy  of  Christ's  Resurrection,  quoted  by  both 
St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,^  Thou  wilt  not  leave  my  soul 
in  Hades,  neither  wilt  Thou  suffer  Thine  Holy  One 
to  see  corruption;  a  conspicuous  outcome  of  that 
privilege  of  age,  which  in  quiescence  hears  the  voice 
of  God.  "I  bless  Jehovah,  who  hath  given  me 
counsel;  yea,  my  heart  instructeth  me  in  the  night 
seasons." 

"  Grow  old  along  with  me  ! 
The  best  is  yet  to  be, 

The  last  of  life,  for  which  the  first  was  made; 
Our  times  are  in  His  hand 
Who  saith,  '  A  whole  I  plann'd, 

Youth  shows  but  half;  trust  God,  see  all,  nor  be  afraid.'  '* 

Grow  old  along  with  Me  phrases  what  the  Psalmist 
heard  from  Jehovah;  his  God  and  ours.  Spend  the 
present  with  an  eye  wise  to  the  future.  All  life 
capable  of  self-consciousness,  therefore  all  human 
Hfe,  looks  forward;  to  what  often  hopeless,  impos- 
sible, unsatisfying  ends,  experience  testifies.  Life  is 
filled  with  wreckage,  because  of  misdirection  of 
desires.  We  spend  our  money  for  that  which  is  not 
bread,  and  our  labor  for  that  which  satisfieth  not.^ 
"Getting  and  spending,"  says  Wordsworth,  *'we  lay 
waste  our  powers";  the  true  enjoyments  of  the  mere 
natural  hfe  even  are  rejected.  "We  have  given  our 
hearts  away,  —  a  sordid  boon!"     And  why?     Be- 

^  St.  John,  viii,  56-58. 

2  Acts,  ii,  25-31;    xiii,  34-37-    I  St.  Peter,  i,  10-12.     St.  Mat- 
thew, xiii,  16,  17.     St.  Luke,  x,  23,  24. 
^  Isaiah,  Iv,  2. 


236         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

cause  "the  world  is  too  much  with  us,  late  and  soon." 
The  world,  which  should  be  God's,  which  God  in 
Christ  loved  and  sought,  but  which  in  spirit  is  the 
opposite  of  God,  the  opponent  of  God.^ 

The  world,  as  it  now  is,  is  summed  up  exhaustively 
by  the  Apostle  in  three  expressions :  the  lust  of  the 
flesh,  the  disordered  desires  for  bodily  indulgence; 
the  lust  of  the  eyes,  inordinate  devotion  to,  and  satis- 
faction in,  the  exercise  of  the  perceptive  faculties, 
concealed  or  dissembled  under  the  exalted  name  of 
■Reason;  the  pride  of  life,  the  peculiar  temptation  of 
Strength,  whether  physical,  mental,  or  moral,  to  trust 
in  itself  rather  than  in  God  —  self-reliance  exagger- 
ated beyond  measure,  and  displayed  in  vainglory.^ 
Along  with  one  or  more  of  these  many  grow  old. 
These,  not  God,  are  the  companions  of  the  journey. 

If  it  is  well  to  be  diligent  to  gather  up  fragments, 
it  is  not  likewise  well  to  postpone  diligence  till  there 
is  nought  but  fragments  to  collect.  The  flush  of  Hfe 
may  lawfully  rejoice  in  its  strength,  —  strength  of 
body,  strength  of  intellect,  strength  of  purpose, 
strength  of  money  or  of  other  means ;  but  if  joy  is  in 
these  alone,  as  possessions,  this  is  the  pride  of  life, 
countless  in  its  manifestations :  luxury,  display,  ar- 
rogance, indiff'erence  to  religion,  and  such  like. 
Spent  upon  the  gratification  of  the  senses,  powers 
serve  the  lust  of  the  flesh;  spent  upon  intellectual 
engrossment,  the  lust  of  the  eye.  From  all  this  there 
is  redemption  in  the  consecrated  motive :    Grow  old 

^  St.  John,  vii,  7;  xv,  18,  19.    St.  James,  iv,  4.    i  St.  John,  ii, 
15-17;  iii,  I,  13;   iv,  5,  6. 
^  I  St.  John,  ii,  16. 


FULFILMENT  237 


along  with  Me.  Else  we  grow  old  along  with  the 
world.  Such  is  the  choice  held  out  to  youth  in  the 
light  of  Christ's  Life  and  example. 

The  choice  made  is  itself  the  judgment,  of  which 
the  Scripture  speaks.  "  Rejoice,  O  young  man,  in  thy 
youth ;  and  let  thy  heart  cheer  thee  in  the  days  of  thy 
youth,  and  walk  in  the  ways  of  thine  heart,  and  in  the 
desire  of  thine  eyes  :  but  know  thou,  that  for  all  these 
things  God  will  bring  thee  into  judgment."  ^  Judg- 
ment, not  to  condemn  because  of  possessions  or  of 
joy,  but  to  ascertain  to  what  ends  they  have  been 
used.  To  all  such  abundances  applies  the  caution  of 
Jesus  Christ  concerning  wealth :  How  hardly  shall 
they  who  have  riches  enter  into  the  Kingdom  of  God,^ 
—  subject  themselves  to  God.  So  long  as  possessions 
or  quahties  are  thought  one's  own,  and  are  so  used, 
they  are  riches,  and  bring  their  specific  danger  of 
trust  in  them,  which  is  a  form  of  the  pride  of  life. 
Only  when  recognized  as  God's,  in  trust  to  the  man, 
does  he  become  poor,  and  able  to  enter  the  Kingdom 
as  subject.  And  the  man  utters  his  own  sentence  by 
his  choice;  even  as  Jesus  Christ  said.  The  condemna- 
tion is  this:  that  the  Light  is  come  into  the  world 
and  men  loved  darkness  rather  than  light.^  By  a 
bitter  irony  we  pronounce  our  own  judgment  and  age 
registers  the  sentence. 

Full-fill  is  an  intensive  word,  which  seeks  and  finds 
emphasis  by  repetition.  Fulfilment  of  life  demands 
not  only  all  the  energy  but  all  the  time  that  man  has, 

^  Ecclesiastes,  xl,  9. 

2  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  22;  xix,  23.  St.  Mark,  x,  23-25.  St.  Luke, 
xviii,  24,  25.     I  Timothy,  vi,  9,  10.  ^  St.  John,  iii,  19-21. 


238         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

to  foster  the  work  which  God  purposes  to  accom- 
phsh  in  him.  It  is  found  in  observing  the  spirit  and 
example  of  the  Master,  who  went  about  His  daily 
work  simply,  improving  each  occasion  as  it  arose  to 
Him.  In  the  general  excellence  of  His  example,  in 
an  inner  spirit  which  is  for  universal  imitation,  we 
overlook  the  fact  that  Jesus  Christ,  like  every  man, 
had  His  individual  mission  and  ministry.  The  uni- 
versality of  the  fruit,  of  the  results,  is  the  consequence 
of  fidelity  to  the  particular  charge  appointed  Him. 

It  was  the  purpose  of  God,  through  Christ  as  Man, 
to  redeem  all  mankind;  but  the  seed  of  this  vast 
enterprise,  bearing  in  its  womb  the  fulfilment  of 
history,  was  the  Personal  life  of  Christ,  manifested 
to  us  in  conduct.  Only  by  antecedent  fulfilment 
within  this  limited  range  could  the  universal  fulfil- 
ment be  accomplished.  His  appointed  work  was 
threefold :  ^  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel,  the  new 
message;  teaching  —  elucidating  the  meaning  of  the 
Jewish  Scriptures,  the  older  message;  in  these  ful- 
filling His  own  ideal  of  the  scribe  instructed  unto  the 
Kingdom  of  heaven,  who  brings  out  of  his  treasures 
things  new  and  old;^  and  healing,  in  virtue  of  the 
miraculous  powers  entrusted  to  Him.  As  St.  Peter 
summed  it  up,  He  was  anointed  with  the  Holy  Spirit 
and  with  Power,  and  went  about  doing  good.^  But 
with  this  distinct  general  purpose  as  His  guide  for  a 
general  line  of  action.  He  is  always  ready  for  occa- 
sions. In  them  He  sees  not  interruption,  but  oppor- 
tunity.   With  the  work  of  redemption  consciously  laid 

^  St.  Matthew,  iv,  23;  ix,  35.    St.  Luke,  iv,  14-44. 
*  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  52.  ^  Acts,  x,  38. 


FULFILMENT  239 


upon  Him,  or,  rather,  assumed  by  Him  in  obedience 
to  the  Father's  will.  He  is  never  in  haste,  never 
presses  on  regardless  of  the  incidents  which  God's 
providence  brings  before  Him. 

He  "  came  to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  was  lost."* 
These  His  words  are  applied  to  one  who  was  not  in 
bodily  distress,  but  in  spiritual  danger.  Such  He 
sought;  but  of  those  in  bodily  distress  it  is  not  said 
usually  that  He  sought,  but  that  they  came,  or  were 
brought,  to  Him.  This  is  the  difference  between  the 
plan,  or  purpose  of  life,  and  its  occasions.  On  His 
way  to  raise  the  dead,  He  stops  to  commend  and 
encourage  the  faith  of  the  one  person  in  a  throng  who 
had  touched  Him  spiritually  and  been  healed.^  Sent 
only  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel,^  He  yet, 
on  occasion,  extends  sympathy  and  benefit  to  a  Gen- 
tile woman,  who  crosses  His  path  with  a  manifesta- 
tion of  spiritual  insight  rare  in  the  chosen  people ;  ^ 
an  insight  which  shows  her  one  of  the  true  seed  of 
believing  Abraham.^  So  also  He  recognizes  and 
declares  the  faith  of  the  Gentile  centurion,  granting 
his  request.^  Let  His  story  be  read  in  this  light,  and 
it  will  be  seen  that  the  formulated  purpose  which 
should  underlie  the  conduct  of  every  life  was  by  Him 
consistently  held  subject  to  the  superior  necessity  of 

^  St.  Luke,  xix,  9,  10.     St.  Matthew,  ix,  13.     St.  Mark,  ii,  16, 

17. 

^  St.  Matthew,  ix,  18-26.  St.  Mark,  v,  22-34.  St.  Luke,  viii, 
41-48. 

^  St.  Matthew,  x,  5,  6;  xv,  24.    Romans,  xv,  8,  9. 

*  St.  Matthew,  XV,  21-28.    St.  Mark,  vii,  24-30. 

^  Galatians,  iii,  7,  8,  9. 

^  St.  Matthew,  viii,  5-13. 


240         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

accepting  the  ordering  of  God,  by  fulfilling  the 
particular  opportunity,  however  it  might  seem  mo- 
mentarily to  arrest  His  progress.  The  supreme 
instance  is  the  Crucifixion,  which  He  accepted, 
although  it  apparently  destroyed  His  work  with  His 
Life. 

The  example  is  a  message  to  each  man;  His  Life 
Is  the  light  of  men. ^  A  general  purpose  and  course  of 
life  we  must  have;  a  framework,  on  which  action  and 
activity  may  climb  upward.  That  is  our  part;  but 
along  with  this  there  must  be  the  perpetual  watching 
for  indications,  for  the  opportunities,  which  are  God's 
part.  Grow  old  along  with  Me;  but  how  shall  this 
be  done  ^  Christ  Himself  gives  to  all  the  answer 
that  He  gave  to  Thomas.  Lord,  we  know  not  whither 
Thou  goest,  and  how  shall  we  know  the  way  .?  Jesus 
answered,  I  am  the  Way,  the  Truth,  and  the  Life; 
no  one  cometh  unto  the  Father  but  through  Me.^  It 
is  not  necessary  to  know  whither,  in  order  to  know 
the  way.  The  end,  indeed,  "  the  Father,"  the  whither, 
is  told;  but  no  more.  Beyond  this,  none  of  us  know 
whither  we  are  being  led;  what  the  nature  of  the 
way  in  itself,  what  its  occasions,  what  its  end  here. 
We  walk  by  faith,  not  by  sight.  Even  for  the  here- 
after we  know  no  more  than  it  is  "to  be  with  Christ," 
in  seeing  Whom  we  have  seen  "The  Father."^ 
Christ  the  beginning,  Christ  the  end,  Christ  the  way 
between;   Alpha  and  Omega,  the  First  and  the  Last.* 

^  St.  John,  i,  4;  viii,  12;   ix,  5;  xii,  35,  36. 
^  Ibid.,  xiv,  4,  5,  6.  ^  Ibid.,  xiv,  9-1 1. 

*  Revelation,  i,  8;  xxi,  6;  xxii,  13.  Isaiah,  xli,  4;  xliii,  10; 
xliv,  6. 


FULFILMENT  '      241 


We  shall  know  the  way  by  seeing  it  in  Himself;  in 
His  Life,  the  Life  of  God;  in  His  teachings  the  words 
of  God;  in  His  conduct  the  character  of  God,  mani- 
fested to  us  in  terms  of  human  flesh,  of  man's  nature; 
the  only  terms  which  we  can  understand,  or  could 
have  understood,  being  men.  This  definition  being 
apprehended,  the  way,  though  unknown,  is  known. 
It  is  conformity  to  Christ's  conduct  and  teachings; 
and  this  implies  perpetual  intercourse  by  the  ap- 
pointed means :  in  the  Word  of  God,  in  Sacraments 
and  Prayer,  in  Thanksgiving  and  Praise.  This  sums 
up  the  command:  Follow  Me;  for  it  sustains  in 
man  the  Life  of  Christ.  Grow  old  with  Me.  From 
birth,  it  has  been  said,  we  begin  to  die.  From  the 
dawn  of  consciousness,  of  responsibility,  we  may 
thus  grow  old. 

St.  Peter,  one  of  the  most  human  of  men,  affords 

a  very  complete  illustration.     He  had  once,  for  a 

passing  moment,   apprehended   the   fullness   of  the 

mystery  before  him :    Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  Son 

of  the  Living  God.^     His  heeding  the  call.  Follow 

Me,^  was  among  the  opening  incidents  of  Christ's 

Ministry.     He  went  along,  for  a  time,  in  perplexity, 

despite  that  sublime  confession;    but  still  along.    At 

the  crucial  moment,  when  all  the  disciples  forsook 

the  Master  and  fled,^  St.  Peter  still  followed,  though 

afar  ofi^,^  and  went  into  the  palace  of  the  high-priest, 

"to   see   the   end."    We   know   what  came  of  that 

^  St.  Matthew,  xvi,  15,  16. 

^  Ihid.y  iv,  18-20;  viii,  22;  xvi,  24.  St.  John,  i,  35-42;  xxi, 
19-22. 

^  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  56.     St.  Mark,  xiv,  50. 
*  St.  Luke,  xxii,  54.     St.  John,  xviii,  15,  16. 

16 


242       '  THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

timid,  yet  fond,  following;  but  we  also  know  the 
end  of  St.  Peter.  He  received  anew  the  command. 
Follow  Me,  with  its  accompanying  prophecy  of 
suffering  and  death.  Thenceforth,  though  with  re- 
current manifestation  of  weakness,^  he  grew  old 
with  Christ.  How  his  weakness  was  made  strong 
is  told  in  the  first  twelve  chapters  of  the  Book  of 
the  Acts. 

To  those  who  have  realized  that  the  testimony  of 
Jesus  is  the  Spirit  of  prophecy,^  the  underlying 
thought  of  the  Way,  as  embraced  in  His  Person, 
comes  out  strongly  in  an  expression  of  the  prophet 
Isaiah ;  as  it  is  also  to  be  found  in  the  Book  of  the 
Proverbs :  The  path  of  the  Just  One  is  as  the  shining 
light  which  shineth  more  and  more  unto  the  perfect 
day.^  The  value  of  light  is  twofold :  not  only  that 
it  reveals  objects,  but  that  it  is  itself  an  object  to  be 
seen  in  darkness,  a  beacon  by  which  to  guide  move- 
ment. Thus  Isaiah  spoke :  When  the  enemy  cometh 
in  like  a  flood,  the  Spirit  of  Jehovah  will  lift  up  a 
standard  against  him.^  These  words,  stirring  though 
they  are,  breathing  the  very  ardor  of  noble  strife,  are 
not  to  be  regarded  simply  as  a  splendid  metaphor,  of 
a  champion  stemming  the  adverse  tide  of  doubtful 
fight,  —  like  Nelson  at  St.  Vincent,  —  conveying  as- 
surance of  Divine  help  in  extremity.  This,  indeed, 
doubtless;  but  to  what  serves  a  standard.?  It  is  a 
beacon,  a  rallying  point,  a  visible  symbol  of  the  es- 
sence of  duty,  guiding  like  a  light  in  the  darkness, 

*  Acts,  X,  13,  14.     Galatians,  ii,  11-21. 

^  Revelation,  xix,  10.  ^  Proverbs,  iv,  18. 

*  Isaiah,  lix,  19. 


FULFILMENT  243 


summoning  to  its  side  every  energy,  to  follow,  to  sup- 
port, to  save.  Thus  it  imparts  direction  to  movement, 
—  a  v^ay,  —  commanding  attainment,  forbidding 
abandonment. 

So,  in  the  spiritual  combat,  of  Church  or  man, 
when  overborne  by  the  weight  of  temptation,  or 
trial,  or  discouragements,  when  impulse  slackens 
or  swerves  through  the  discord  of  motives;  when 
standards  of  right  and  wrong  are  beaten  down  or 
obscured  by  the  surgings  of  passion  or  self-interest; 
when,  in  a  word,  there  impends  the  worst  of  dis- 
asters that  can  befall  a  warring  host,  —  being  put 
to  confusion,  —  the  Spirit  of  Jehovah  lifts  up  the 
standard,  Christ;  His  Life,  His  Example,  His 
Words.  Where  stands  He  in  this  tumult  ?  The 
standard,  like  the  Way,  is  a  Person.  I,  if  I  be  lifted 
up,  will  draw  all  men  unto  Me.^  It  recalls  those 
fine  lines : 

"  If  my  standard  bearer  fall,  as  fall  full  well  he  may, 

Press  where  ye  see  my  white  plume  shine,  amid  the 
ranks  of  war." 

**Lord,  in  Thee  have  I  trusted,  let  me  never  be  con- 
founded." But  it  must  be  remembered  that  such 
devotion  to  a  standard  presupposes  a  long  acceptance 
and  association,  the  high  development  of  duty  and 
honor  and  love  which  the  colors  represent  to  the 
soldier.  Such  devotion  is  not  born  in  a  day.  It  is 
the  consecrated  habit  of  a  lifetime,  with  all  the  sway, 

^  St.  John,  xii,  32;   iii,  14;  viii,  28.     Isaiah,  xHx,  22. 


244         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

instinctive,  half-unconscious,  that  is  exerted  by  hab- 
its, good  or  bad. 

The  thought  of  the  Way  is  one  that  admits  and 
requires  a  large  elaboration  —  working  out  —  in  de- 
tails and  in  application;  but  it  may  be  questioned 
whether  one  man  can  do  this  well  for  another.  Sug- 
gestions doubtless  are  useful  and  can  be  made;  and 
it  is  suggestion  chiefly,  rather  than  a  formal  plan  of 
life,  that  religious  reading,  even  of  the  Bible,  gives 
to  each.  The  most  elaborate  system  of  "direction" 
can  scarcely  effect  more  than  outlines,  with  the  at- 
tendant evil  of  sapping  individual  power  to  compre- 
hend personal  life,  and  to  order  personal  conduct. 
For  the  rest,  if  pursued  in  this  spirit,  of  purpose 
saturated  with  the  knowledge  of  Christ  as  revealed 
to  us  in  the  New  Testament,  life  itself  gives  its  teach- 
ing; from  moment  to  moment  shows  the  way  in  the 
light  of  the  Way;  for  life  is  the  ordering  of  God. 
"Though  the  Lord  give  thee  the  bread  of  adversity 
and  the  water  of  affliction,  yet  shall  not  thy  teachers 
be  hidden  any  more,  but  thine  eyes  shall  see  thy 
teachers;  and  thine  ears  shall  hear  a  word  behind 
thee,  saying.  This  is  the  Way,  walk  ye  in  it;  when 
ye  turn  to  the  right  hand  and  when  ye  turn  to  the 
left."  ^  To  the  attentive,  life  is  a  continuing  revela- 
tion ;   of  it  we  may  say  with  Cowper, 

"  Unbelief 
Will  scan  His  work  in  vain. 
God  is  His  own  interpreter, 

And  He  will  make  it  plain ; " 

*  Isaiah,  xxx,  20,  21.  Compare  also,  xxxv,  5,  8,  9;  xlii,  16; 
I,  10.     Proverbs,  iv,  18. 


FULFILMENT  245 


or  with  Newman, 

"  I  do  not  ask  to  see 
The  distant  scene ;  one  step  enough  for  me." 

Note. —  In  the  Book  of  the  Acts,  there  are  three  accounts  of 
the  conversion  of  St.  Paul.  They  agree  in  substance;  but  in  some 
details  differ  slightly,  and  significantly.  Chapter  ix  is  a  current 
narrative  by  the  author  of  the  book;  the  two  others,  chapters  xxii 
and  xxvi,  are  given  as  addresses  by  St.  Paul  himself  The  first 
records  merely  the  incidents  of  the  conversion,  with  some  subse- 
quent particulars,  which  apparently  are  given  in  order  of  time, 
although  without  specification  of  intervals. 

Of  the  two  addresses,  the  first  is  to  a  Jewish  audience,  the  sec- 
ond to  one  characteristically  Gentile;  conditions  which  in  each 
case  dictate  the  manner  in  which  the  orator  handles  his  materials, 
in  order  to  gain  attention  and  to  convince.  To  use  his  own  words,  he 
makes  himself  all  things  to  all  men,  that  he  may  by  all  means  save 
some,  (i  Corinthians,  ix,  19-22.)  Speaking  to  Jews,  assembled 
in  an  excited  mob,  ready  to  burst  into  an  outcry  that  would  drown 
his  voice,  he  preludes  his  statements  with  an  appeal  to  sentiments 
which  he  and  they  had  in  common;  and  then  develops  his  story 
in  the  particulars  which  account  for  his  acceptance  of  Jesus  as  the 
Messiah  of  the  Jews.  This  alone  was  inevitably  offensive  to  his 
hearers;  but  much  less  so  than  the  idea  of  the  Messiah  being  for 
the  Gentiles  as  well  as  for  themselves.  This,  therefore,  he  post- 
pones to  the  last,  and  consequently  does  not  mention  the  inti- 
mation of  a  message  to  the  Gentiles,  conveyed  to  him  at  the 
period  of  his  conversion,  but  only  the  commission  to  that  effect 
given  him  in  Jerusalem,  some  time  subsequently.  His  caution 
is  justified;  for  although,  like  a  practised  pleader,  he  had  gained 
time  for  passion  to  subside  and  conciliation  to  work,  the  mere  men- 
tion of  the  words  of  Christ,  *'  I  will  send  thee  far  hence  unto  the 
Gentiles,"  creates  an  uproar  which  then  and  there  ends  his  speech. 

Some  two  years  later  he  speaks  to  Gentiles.  Under  these  differ- 
ing circumstances  he  introduces  unhesitatingly  the  words,  "  I  send 
thee  to  the  Gentiles,"  on  the  first  occasion  of  their  utterance;  that 
is,  when  Christ  appeared  to  him  on  the  road  to  Damascus.    The 


246         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

exclusive  spirit  of  the  Jews  was  known  to  his  audience;  he  him- 
self was  a  Jew;  his  object  to  conciHate,  to  persuade  his  Gentile 
hearers.  The  mission  to  the  Gentiles  is  accordingly  introduced  at 
the  first  opportunity  offered  by  the  narrative,  and  is  thenceforth 
emphasized  by  repetition. 

In  themselves,  the  fact  of  two  commands,  on  the  way  to  Damas- 
cus and  at  Jerusalem,  stands  no  more  in  need  of  explanation  than 
does  a  similar  repetition  in  secular  matters,  in  an  important  charge 
to  an  agent.  Besides,  they  harmonize  perfectly  with  the  course 
natural  to  a  reflective  man,  when  receiving  an  idea  not  only  new  to 
him,  but  revolutionary.  Action  is  delayed  for  reflection,  for  the 
test  of  the  future;  worked  out  in  thought,  in  circumstances,  and  in 
experience.  Without  inquiring  curiously  into  the  nature  of  Christ's 
manifestation  to  St.  Paul,  it  can  be  believed  that  an  occurrence  and 
words  adequate  to  instant  conviction  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ 
might  not  as  immediately  bear  the  certainty  that  he  had  under- 
stood aright  as  to  the  mission  to  the  Gentiles.  This  traversed  his 
entire  past;  Christ  Himself  had  been  sent  only  to  the  Jews;  what 
sure  warrant  that  his  follower  should  go  to  the  Gentiles  ?  In  this 
connection  it  must  be  remembered  that  St.  Paul  himself  intimates 
in  both  addresses  that,  although  commissioned  to  the  Gentiles,  he 
first  and  for  some  time  preached  to  the  Jews.  (Chap,  xxii,  18-21 ; 
xxvi»  20.)  With  this  the  account  in  Chapter  ix  (20-22),  agrees; 
and  throughout  his  ministry  he  first  argues  in  the  synagogues. 
(Chap,  xiii,  5,  14,  15;  xiv,  i;  xvii,  i,  10;  xviii,  4,  19;  xix,  8.)  A 
doubt  of  this  kind,  or  hesitancy  due  to  some  other  cause,  appears 
to  be  impHed  in  the  statement  to  the  Galatians  (Chap,  i,  15-18), 
that  he  conferred  with  no  one,  but  did  withdraw  into  Arabia  — 
by  himself.  This  is  the  reasonable  course  for  a  man  satisfied  that 
God  is  dealing  immediately  with  him,  but  yet  recognizing  the 
possibility  of  self-deception.  He  takes  time;  as  St.  John  recom- 
mends (i  St.  John,  iv,  i),  he  proves  the  spirit,  whether  it  is  of  God; 
but  he  will  have  no  intermediary.  The  fate  of  the  prophet  sent  to 
Jeroboam  (i  Kings,  xiii)  would  be  present  to  one  who  knew  the 
Scriptures,  as  did  St.  Paul. 

From  the  statements  to  the  Galatians,  it  would  appear  that  be- 
tween the  first  and  second  commissions,  at  Damascus  and  at 
Jerusalem,  three  years  intervened.    Yet  the  same  reverent  caution. 


FULFILMENT  247 


especially  notable  in  one  of  his  impetuous  spirit,  appears  after 
many  years  in  his  going  to  Jerusalem  to  confer  with  the  other 
Apostles  concerning  the  substance  of  his  preaching,  —  "  the  gospel 
which  I  preach."  (Galatians,  ii,  i,  2.)  This  jealousy  of  self- 
deception,  at  two  particular  crises,  manifested  in  two  courses  of 
conduct  outwardly  contradictory,  indicates  the  scrutiny  to  which 
the  Apostles  subjected  that  which  they  called  revelation.  To  the 
believer  it  is  confirmatory  of  their  soberness  and  of  their  mission. 


CHAPTER  V 

HOPE 

THE  revelations  of  life  are  progressive,  and  to 
the  Christian  believer  come  charged  with 
hope.  We  owe  to  St.  Paul  the  precise  for- 
mulation of  Hope  as  a  Christian  grace  and  duty,  as 
something  more  than  a  happy  condition  of  mind, 
largely  constitutional,  —  optimistic,  as  we  say.  Faith, 
Hope,  Love.  If  Love  be  the  greatest,^  possibly  we 
may  infer  an  ascending  order,  placing  Hope  above 
even  Faith.  Faith  the  foundation.  Love  the  crown; 
Hope  perhaps  the  rising  of  the  building,  or  the  cheer 
of  the  way.  At  all  events,  it  is  noticeable  that  St. 
Paul  insistently  commands  rejoicing,  and  associates 
Hope  with  experience  of  life.  There  is,  too,  his  other 
series:  Tribulations  work  patience;  and  patience, 
experience;  and  experience,  Hope. ^  For  "  patience," 
the  Revised  Version  reads  "  steadfastness;"  and  for 
"experience,"  "  approvedness;"  but  steadfastness  is 
but  patience  without  the  additional  implication  of 
suffering,  and  approvedness  apphes  to  the  proof 
furnished  by  life  (which  is  experience),  as  well  as  to 
proof  made  of  the  individual.  Tribulation  works  to 
Hope;  how  much  more  do  the  blessings  which  we 
too  often  fail  to  note,  or  to  find  cause  for  rejoicing. 
Again,  he  writes  to  the  Thessalonians,  We  remember, 

*  I  Corinthians,  xiii,  13.  ^  Romans,  v,  3-5. 

248 


HOPE  249 


brethren,  your  patience  of  hope  in  Jesus  Christ.^ 
And  again,  Hope  that  is  seen  is  not  hope,  for  who 
hopeth  for  that  which  he  seeth ;  but  if  we  hope  for 
that  we  see  not,  then  do  we  with  patience  wait 
for  it.^ 

The  patience  which  rnust  characterize  gradual 
progress  is  therefore  associated  closely  to  Hope,  in 
the  apprehension  of  the  man  who  in  the  ranks  of 
Christian  teachers  stands  next  to  Christ  Himself. 
St.  Paul  had  long  and  varied  experience  of  life,  of 
its  ups  and  downs,  its  sufferings  and  happiness.  He 
knew  thus  the  extremes  of  fortune  and  of  position," 
and  from  them  had  learned  in  whatever  state  he  was 
therewith  to  be  content;*  content  with  things  pres- 
ent.^ Specifically,  he  had  undergone  the  great  dis- 
appointment common  to  all  the  Apostles,  that  the 
coming  of  the  Kingdom  of  Christ  was  deferred  to  a 
time  unknown;  that  its  fulfilment  was  not  to  be  in 
their  day.  John  the  Baptist  had  felt  this,  and  in  a 
moment  of  apparent  impatience  sent  to  ask  of  Christ 
whether  He  really  was  the  One  who  should  come.® 
The  Twelve  during  the  time  of  His  ministry  ex- 
pected that  the  Kingdom  of  God  would  appear 
immediately;  "^  and  after  the  Resurrection  asked  the 
question.^  The  reply  of  Christ  was  for  all  time  and 
for  all  stages  of  life :  It  is  not  for  you  to  know  the 
times  and  seasons ;  but  ye  shall  receive  Power.    This 

*  I  Thessalonians,  i,  3.  ^  Romans,  viii,  24,  25. 

2  Philippians,  iv,  12.  *  Ihid.,  iv,  11. 

^  Hebrews,  xiii,  5. 

«  St.  Matthew,  xi,  2-6.  St.  Luke,  vii,  18-23. 

'  St.  Luke,  xix,  11.  ^  Acts,  i,  6,  7,  8. 


250         THE  LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

left  the  future  undetermined,  and  concentrated  at- 
tention upon  the  present,  the  now,  as  the  field  for 
man's  energies.  For  that  it  promised  Power.  The 
strong  prepossession  of  their  minds  was  thus  left  to 
be  corrected  gradually  by  experience.  The  times 
and  the  seasons  are  to  man  relatively  unimportant; 
for  him  always  there  is  but  one  season  —  now,  and 
its  opportunities.  As  his  now,  so  his  strength;  but 
for  that  which  he  sees  not  he  is  to  hope,  and  the 
power  which  Hope  brings  will  be  given  him. 

Like  all  God's  orderings,  the  delay  was  educative 
to  those  who  were  exercised  thereby.  In  this  school 
St.  Paul  learned  Hope.  The  Kingdom  seen  would 
cease  to  be  an  object  of  hope;  not  seen,  deferred, 
he  learned  with  patience  to  wait  for  it  —  but  always 
in  hope.  God  is  to  him  the  God  of  Hope,  who  fills 
with  all  joy  and  peace  in  believing,  that  ye  may 
abound  in  Hope,  through  the  power  of  the  Holy 
Ghost. ^  Whatsoever  things  were  written  aforetime 
were  written  for  our  learning,  that  through  patience 
and  through  comfort  of  the  Scriptures,  we  might 
have  Hope.^  Christians  are  to  know  the  Hope  of 
God's  calling.^  They  are  called  in  one  Hope.^  Hope 
is  laid  up  for  them,  the  Hope  of  the  Gospel;  Christ 
in  you  the  Hope  of  glory.^  So  St.  Peter  says.  Chris- 
tians are  begotten  again  to  a  living  Hope.^  He 
charges  them  to  be  sober  and  to  set  their  Hope 
perfectly  upon  the  grace  to  be  brought  them  at  the 


*  Romans,  xv,  13. 

2  Ihid.,  4. 

^  Ephesians,  i,  18. 

*  Ihtd.,  iv,  4. 

^  Colossians,  i,  5,  23,  27. 

«  I  St.  Peter, 

HOPE  251 


revelation  of  Jesus  Christ,^  to  be  ready  always  to 
give  a  reason  for  the  Hope  that  is  in  them.^  This 
frame  of  mind,  once  attained,  was  its  own  reward,  its 
own  fulfilment,  and  brought  its  own  manifestations 
in  words  and  acts.  The  temper  of  spiritual  Hope, 
of  godly  expectation,  if  perfect,  would  exceed  even 
possession. 

"  'T  is  not  the  grapes  of  Canaan  that  repay. 
But  the  high  faith  that  failed  not  by  the  way."^ 

The  inward  spirit  is  better  than  the  outward  gain. 
If  the  possession  of  the  kingdom  meant  stoppage, 
stagnation  of  development,  it  would  be  an  inferior 
condition;  but  eternity,  offering  endless  progress, 
sustains  endlessly  Hope.     Hope  abideth.^ 

The  Cross,  the  accepted  symbol  of  Christ's  love, 
is  equally  the  symbol  of  His  Hope.  In  it  He  saw 
fulfilled  the  desire  of  His  soul  and  was  satisfied.^ 
"I,  if  I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth,  will  draw  all  men 
unto  Me.  This  He  said,  signifying  by  what  manner 
of  death  He  should  die."  ^  To  draw  all  men  unto 
Him  was  the  hope  of  His  Life,  as  it  was  His  mission. 
He  breathed  out  the  life  of  His  humiliation  with 
words  of  Hope:  It  is  finished.  Father,  into  Thy 
hands  I  commend  My  spirit.^  In  the  accomplish- 
ment  of  His   sacrifice   He   saw   Redemption    com- 

^  St.  Peter,  i,  13.  ^  Ibid.,  iii,  15. 

^  James  Russell  Lowell,  Commemoration  Ode. 
*  I  Corinthians,  xiii,  13.  ^  Isaiah,  liii,  11. 

«  St.  John,  xii,  31-33. 
^  Ihid.,  xix,  30.     St.  Luke,  xxiii,  46. 


252         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

pleted,  to  the  last  in  time  who  shall  be  redeemed.^ 
Peace,  joy,  assurance,  patience  inexhaustible,  were 
constantly  with  Him;  and  these  are  the  qualities  of 
Hope.  Hope  He  had  in  the  depths  of  which  He  said, 
My  soul  is  exceeding  sorrowful,  even  unto  death.^ 
Only  those  who  confound  ease  with  peace  will  find 
a  paradox  here;  or  in  the  parallel  expression,  "Peace 
I  leave  with  you;  My  Peace  I  give  unto  you,''  ^  con- 
trasted with  the  words,  "Now  is  My  soul  troubled."  ^ 
Trouble  with  Him  was  like  the  troubling  of  the  purest 
water,  which  though  agitated  throws  up  no  evil,  no 
polluting  substance,  such  as  is  despair,  —  loss  of 
Hope.  It  is  the  wicked  who  are  like  the  troubled 
sea,  which  casts  up  mire  and  dirt.  There  is  no 
peace,  saith  my  God,  to  the  wicked.^ 

Hope,  as  a  frame  of  mind  and  feeling,  is  to  be 
classed  among  the  emotions.  On  the  other  hand,  its 
being  associated  by  St.  Paul  with  faith  and  love 
places  it  among  the  duties  of  the  Christian ;  for  both 
faith  and  love  are  the  subject  of  distinct  emphatic 
commands  by  Jesus  Christ,  reiterated  by  the  Apostles. 
We  are  charged,  in  short,  to  cherish  emotion  as  a 
valuable  factor  in  Christian  life.  St.  Paul's  exhorta- 
tion. Desire  earnestly  the  best  gifts,®  —  itself  a  com- 
mand to  emotion,  to  desire,  —  precedes  immediately 
his  eulogy  of  Love,  with  which  he  couples  Faith  and 
Hope. 

*  Isaiah,  xlix,  5-12,  22,  23.      See  note,  end  of  chapter. 
^  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  38.     St.  Mark,  xiv,  34. 

^  St.  John,  xiv,  27. 

*  Ihid.y  xii,  27.  ^  Isaiah,  Ivii,  19-21. 
®  I  Corinthians,  xii,  31. 


HOPE  253 


There  is  a  disposition  to  undervalue  emotions, 
because  of  their  frequent  transiency  and  lack  of  se- 
quence. In  so  far,  reproach  is  just;  and  this  ten- 
dency will  be  particularly  strong  among  practical 
peoples,  whose  eyes  are  fixed  upon  results,  upon 
things  accomplished.  To  regard  emotion  solely  thus, 
however,  is  to  depreciate  power;  for  emotion  is 
power.  But  like  all  power  it  needs  to  be  managed, 
economized,  guided,  and  disciplined.  It  must  not  be 
allowed  to  run  to  waste,  or  to  be  misdirected.  Emo- 
tions must  be  brought  to  book,  made  to  give  an 
account  of  themselves,  as  shown  in  their  fruit.  They 
need  also  —  and  this  is  often  overlooked  —  to  be 
acquired.  "The  end  of  the  commandment  is  love," 
and  love  is  assuredly  an  emotion ;  the  greatest  in  the 
real  meaning  of  the  word,  which  is,  to  move  a  person 
out  of  himself,  or  of  his  accustomed  course.  The 
"commandment,"  in  the  expression  quoted,  is  to  a 
course  of  action,  the  purpose,  or  end,  of  which  is  the 
emotion  of  love. 

Emotions  which  end  in  themselves  and  not  in  action 
are  vain,  or  worse.  They  enter  into  the  category  of 
opportunities  unimproved.  Such  is  the  case  of  those 
of  whom  Christ  said  that  when  they  hear  the  word 
they  receive  it  straightway  with  joy;  but  not  having 
root  in  themselves  fall  away  under  trouble  or  persecu- 
tion.^ They  experienced  emotion,  joy;  but  it  was 
superficial,  ended  in  itself,  did  not  strike  root  down- 
ward, but  like  escaping  steam  blew  away  upward. 
Emotion  reproduces  in  this  the  relation  of  theory  to 


*  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  5,  6,  20,  21. 


254         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

practice.  Theory,  however  acute  or  elaborate, 
exists  strictly  only  in  the  mind;  not  till  it  is  carried 
into  action  does  it  become  eflFectual.  Emotions  have 
the  same  office  to  practice,  although  they  do  not 
represent  the  same  processes  as  theory  does.  Theory 
is  sight.  Emotion  is  power;  the  one  directive,  the 
other  forceful.  To  disparage  either  in  comparison 
with  practice,  or  with  so-called  practical  results,  is 
to  decry  means  in  relation  to  ends. 

A  Christian  life  is  not  fulfilled  which  has  know- 
ingly omitted  acquiring,  to  the  extent  of  its  faculties, 
the  understanding  of  the  ways  of  the  Life,  which 
corresponds  to  theory,  or  the  consecrated  power 
which  emotion  ministers.  Such  mental  and  moral 
acquirements  enter  into  the  person's  being,  of  which 
the  conduct  of  life  is  the  outward  expression.  To 
aim  at  practical  results  without  understanding  of  the 
fittest  means  to  be  employed  is,  to  say  the  best,  the 
offering  of  a  service  which  cannot  but  be  maimed. 
It  was  said  of  the  Law,  that  although  it  was  holy  and 
just  and  good,  it  was  defective  in  power.^  So  there 
are  means  which  in  practice  are  weak  and  unprofit- 
able to  the  ends  in  view;  it  is  by  the  bringing  in  of  a 
better  Hope,  a  clearer  view,  and  greater  force,  that 
we  draw  nigh  to  God  effectually.^ 

Emotion  harnessed  and  guided  is  steam  controlled 
in  a  boiler,  with  pipes  connecting  to  the  engine  which 
it  is  to  drive.  The  steam  is  no  less  a  force  if  it  be 
allowed  to  escape;  it  simply  becomes  a  force  wasted, 
unimproved.     To  use  another  simile  —  our  Lord's 

^  Romans,  vii,  12,  18-25.  ^  Hebrews,  vii,  18,  19. 


HOPE  255 


own  ^  —  emotions  are  talents,  for  which  we  must  ren- 
der an  account.  Fear  and  love  are  emotions ;  the  fear 
of  God  is  the  beginning  of  wisdom,  the  love  of  God 
the  end ;  but  fear  and  love  may  end  in  feeling  only, 
in  which  case  there  is  neither  wisdom  nor  profit. 

Listen  to  Emotion,  acquired,  disciplined,  directed, 
speaking  in  one  of  its  most  celebrated  utterances. 
What  things  were  gain  to  me,  these  have  I  counted 
loss  for  Christ.  Yea,  verily,  and  I  count  all  things 
to  be  loss  for  the  excellency  of  the  knowledge  of 
Christ  Jesus  my  Lord.  For  Him  I  suffered  the  loss 
of  all  things,  and  do  count  them  but  dung  that  I  may 
gain  Christ;  that  I  may  know  Him,  and  the  power 
of  His  Resurrection,  and  the  fellowship  of  His  suffer- 
ings, becoming  conformed  to  His  death.  I  press  on, 
if  so  be  that  I  may  lay  hold  on  that  for  which  I  was 
laid  hold  on  by  Jesus  Christ.  I  count  not  myself  yet 
to  have  laid  hold;  but  one  thing  I  do,  forgetting  the 
things  which  are  behind  and  stretching  forward  to 
the  things  which  are  before,  I  press  on.^ 

To  use  an  expression  of  the  speaker's  own  else- 
where, these  are  "words  of  truth  and  soberness,"^ 
consistent  with  pure  rational  decision,  consonant 
with  facts,  and  eminently  productive  in  results;  but 
they  will  scarcely  be  called  unemotional.  They  rep- 
resent a  momentary  culmination  of  a  frame  of  sub- 
stantial feeling,  roused  to  utterance  at  the  time  by 
the  particular  circumstances  of  his  writing.  They 
are  words  of  Hope,  unrelaxing  in  energy,  dynamic; 
as  it  is  steadfast  also  in  grip,  —  static,  —  the  anchor 

*  St.  Matthew,  xxv,  14-30.  ^  Philippians,  iii,  7-14. 

^  Acts,  xxvi,  25. 


256         THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

of  the  soul,  sure  and  steadfast.^  To  apply  to  this 
instance  words  used  concerning  the  writer  on  another 
occasion,  "His  spirit  was  moved  within  him,"  ^  — 
when  he  saw  Athens  full  of  idols;  an  emotion  which, 
being  by  him  improved,  brought  souls  to  Christ.  In 
the  opening  of  his  Christian  course,  St.  Paul  had  ex- 
perience of  emotions;  of  hatred,^  vivid  then  as  the 
devotion  just  quoted,  overcome  by  the  emotion  of 
awe,^  succeeded  by  that  of  love.  The  good  had  cast 
out  the  bad,  as  perfect  love  casts  out  fear,  and  then 
had  been  cherished  and  nourished  by  reflection  and 
action.  The  nutriment  of  emotion  appears  in  the 
words.  That  I  may  know  Him,  and  the  power  of  His 
Resurrection,  and  the  fellowship  of  His  sufferings, 
being  thereto  conformed.  In  other  words,  St.  Paul 
had  submitted  himself  to,  had  diligently  cultivated, 
the  impressions  which  meditation  upon  Christ  Him- 
self, His  excellence.  His  sufferings,  His  Resurrection, 
were  calculated  to  produce  and  to  sustain.  So  pro- 
duced and  so  sustained,  they  constituted  an  emotion 
that  found  expression,  not  only  in  the  glowing 
words  of  the  passages  quoted,  but  in  a  life,  the  self- 
devotion  of  which  needs  not  to  be  told  here.^ 

To  his  understanding,  the  first  in  order  of  the  fruits 
of  the  Spirit  are  emotions:  Love,  Joy,  Peace;®  not 
improbably  the  exact  succession  of  his  experiences 
after  his  conversion.  To  him,  the  Peace  of  God 
passeth    understanding;'     the    power   of  its    grasp 

^  Hebrews,  vi,  18-20.  ^  Acts,  xvii,  16. 

^  Ihid.,  ix,  i;  xxvi,  9-II,  *  Ibid.,  ix,  4-9;  xxii,  7-II. 

^  I  Corinthians,  xv,  10.    2  Corinthians,  xi,  21-31. 

®  Galatians,  v,  22.  '  Philippians,  iv,  7. 


HOPE  257 


therefore  is  not  intellectual,  though  accordant  with 
reason.  It  is  a  mode  of  feeling,  moral,  and  spiritually 
sustained.  Upon  the  three  emotions  follow  actions 
—  that  is,  conduct  —  corresponding;  long-suffering, 
gentleness,  goodness,  faithfulness,  meekness,  self- 
control.^  To  his  Ephesian  disciples  he  commends 
spiritual  emotion,  and  its  becoming  indulgence,  in 
strong  phrase.^  Be  not  drunk  with  wine,  but  be 
filled  with  the  Spirit;  speaking  to  yourselves  in 
psalms  and  hymns  and  spiritual  songs,  singing  and 
making  melody  in  your  hearts  to  the  Lord.  The 
antithesis  between  wine  and  the  Spirit  is  daring; 
but  it  is  not  that  of  opposition  merely,  but  of  similar 
effects  from  opposite  causes,  manifesting  themselves 
in  analogous  actions.  The  rejoicing  of  faith  and 
hope  and  love  may  affect  the  spirits  as  does  the  re- 
freshment of  wine. 

Refreshment,  indeed,  being  the  restoration  of 
strength  and  courage,  to  the  weary  or  depressed,  is 
a  just  aim  of  spiritual  emotion.  The  renewal  of 
force  is  not  less  necessary  than  its  first  creation.^ 
That  which  innocently  ministers  to  such  an  end  is 
good.  Music  in  its  place,  as  meditation  in  its,  min- 
isters to  that  drawing  near  to  God  in  the  affections, 
which  is  true  spiritual  emotion.  The  influence  of 
numbers,  inspired  by  a  common  purpose,  takes  shape 
in  power,  which  may  be  operative  to  signal  result. 
When  the  brethren  came  to  meet  St.  Paul  on  his  way 
to  captivity,  he  thanked  God  and  took  courage.* 


'  Galatians,  v,  22.  ^  Ephesians,  v,  18,  19. 

^  Isaiah,  xl,  29-31.  ^  Acts,  xxviii,  14,  15. 

17 


258         THE  LIFE   OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

The  effect  of  such  circumstances  upon  the  individ- 
ual is  notorious ;  that  it  often  passes  with  the  occasion, 
is  inoperative,  does  not  condemn  the  condition  or 
the  means,  but  the  man  himself.  He  has  simply 
thrown  away  opportunity.  Church  attendance  min- 
isters to  such  ends.  They  are  alike  guilty  who  by 
absence  fail  to  supply  the  numbers,  or  who,  being 
present,  fail  in  due  preparation  of  mind  and  heart, 
in  reflective  appreciation  of  the  conditions,  and  so 
more  or  less  miss  the  uplift,  the  emotion,  the  inspira- 
tion, through  which  the  grace  of  God  can  work  more 
powerfully  to  its  ends.  In  short.  Emotion  as  a  work- 
ing power  can  be  acquired;  it  is  largely  dependent 
upon  the  will. 

Consequently  and  fairly.  Love  and  Joy,  emotions, 
are  recognized  and  commanded  frequently  by  the 
Apostles,  who  herein  are  consistent  with  the  Old 
Testament,  permeated  with  looking  forward  to  the 
Messiah,  the  Christ.  Be  fervent  in  spirit,  serving  the 
Lord.^  We  rejoice  in  hope  of  the  glory  of  God. ^  We 
rejoice  in  tribulations.^  Rejoicing  in  hope.*  Rejoice 
with  those  that  do  rejoice.*  Rejoice  evermore.^ 
Rejoice  in  the  Lord  alway :  and  again  I  say,  rejoice.® 
In  nothing  be  anxious,  and  the  peace  of  God  which 
passeth  understanding  shall  keep  your  hearts.''  I 
rejoice  in  the  Lord.^  The  glorying  of  our  hope.^  Ye 
took  joyfully  the  spoiling  of  your  possessions,  know- 

*  Romans,  xii,  11.  ^  Ihid.,  v,  2. 

^  Ibid.,  V,  3.  *  Ihid.,  xii,  12,  15. 

^  I  Thessalonians,  v,  16.  ^  Philippians,  iv,  4. 

'    Ihid.,  6,  7.  8   Ihid.,   10. 

^  Hebrews,  iii,  6. 


HOPE  259 


ing  that  ye  have  a  better  and  abiding  possession.^ 
Ye  greatly  rejoice  in  your  living  hope  by  the  Resur- 
rection of  Jesus  Christ  from  the  dead;  Whom, 
having  not  seen,  ye  love;  in  Whom,  though  now  ye 
see  Him  not,  yet  believing  ye  rejoice  greatly  with  joy 
unspeakable  and  full  of  glory. ^  All  these  are  echoes 
of  the  words  of  Jesus  Christ:  These  things  have 
I  spoken  unto  you  that  My  joy  may  be  in  you,  and 
that  your  joy  may  be  fuU.^  In  the  world  ye  shall 
have  tribulation;  but  be  of  good  cheer,  I  have  over- 
come the  world. ^  Your  sorrow  shall  be  turned  into 
joy,  and  your  joy  no  one  taketh  away  from  you.^ 
Ask  in  My  Name  and  ye  shall  receive;  that  your  joy 
may  be  full.®  These  things  speak  I  in  the  world. 
Father;  that  these  may  have  My  joy  made  full  in 
themselves. '^  He  who,  being  weary  or  depressed,  has 
known  the  cheer  and  the  renewed  courage  of  good 
news  from  a  far  country,  like  cold  waters  to  a  thirsty 
soul,^  can  scarcely  fail  to  appreciate  what  Emotion  can 
contribute  to  strength.  It  is  in  another  form  the  mor- 
ale^ of  which  Napoleon  said  that  it  dominates  war. 

In  conclusion,  we  to-day  have  grounds,  good 
grounds,  for  such  good  cheer.  Like  St.  Paul,  we  may 
thank  God  and  take  courage,  for  the  brethren  come 
to  meet  us.  If  there  be,  on  the  one  hand,  a  sorrowful 
falling  off  in  the  numbers  which  assemble  themselves 
together,  in  the  church  buildings,  there  is  on  the 
other  abundant  indication  of  spiritual  life  quickened 

^  Hebrews,  x,  34.  ^  i  St.  Peter,  i,  3-8. 

^  St.  John,  XV,  II.  *  Ihid.,  xvi,  '^'^. 

^  Ibid.,  xvi,  20,  22.  ®  Ibid.,  xvi,  24. 

"^  Ibid.,  xvii,  13.  ^  Proverbs,  xxv,  25. 


26o         THE  LIFE  OF  THE  CHRISTIAN 

and  strengthened  in  those  who  abide  faithful.  They 
who  have  gone  from  us  were  not  of  us;  if  they  had 
been,  they  no  doubt  would  have  continued  with  us.^ 
Had  not  St.  PauFs  heart  been  stayed  upon  God,  had 
he  not  had  root  in  himself,^  the  joining  of  a  few  poor, 
uninfluential  men  would  not  have  meant  to  him  what 
it  did.  The  same  days  that  are  witnessing  now  the 
withdrawal  of  the  indifferent  are  seeing  also  by 
marked  tokens  the  intensifying  of  the  missionary 
spirit  in  the  several  bodies  of  Christians;  their  draw- 
ing together  for  a  common  object.  Differences  are 
not  ignored ;  but  unity  in  the  one  Master  is  recognized 
and  given  the  first  place.  Both  in  men  and  in  money 
the  apparently  reduced  numbers  give  larger  and  in- 
creasing offerings  of  men  and  of  means  to  the  spread 
of  the  message  of  Him. 

The  canon  of  the  Old  Testament  draws  to  its  close 
with  the  words:  They  that  feared  the  Lord  spake 
often  one  to  another,  and  He  hearkened  and  heard.^ 
Immediately  before  and  after  these  words  themselves, 
occur  allusions  to  a  time  of  sifting;  of  separation 
between  those  who  feared  and  those  who  did  not. 
Such  periods  are  recurrent;  but  they  have  a  special 
solemnity  when  they  mark  the  end  of  an  era,  as  did 
this.  The  final  charge  to  the  men  of  that  day  was  to 
"Remember"  the  Law  of  Moses,  the  message  which 
they  had  received ;  and  to  look  for  the  signs  of  the 
coming  of  the  Messiah.^  The  command  to  hope  is 
coupled  with  an  assurance  of  Hope :  To  those  that 
love  My  Name  shall  the  Sun  of  Righteousness  arise 

^  I  St.  John,  ii,  19.  ^  St.  Matthew,  xiii,  21. 

^  Malachi,  iii,  16.  *  Ihid.y  iv. 


HOPE  261 

with  healing  on  His  wings.  After  that,  silence,  till 
the  voice  of  John  the  Baptist  was  heard  in  the  wilder- 
ness of  Judaea.^  The  command  was  to  hope,  as  well 
as  to  fear;  to  observe  commandments  and  to  look 
forward. 

The  command  to-day  is  the  same.  The  history 
of  Israel  was  one  of  repeated  apostasies;  of  sever- 
ances, between  those  who  feared  and  those  who  did 
not.  Nevertheless,  there  were  always  the  mystical 
seven  thousand  faithful,^  and  in  the  end  it  was  of 
Israel  that  came  Christ,  the  Hope  of  humanity,  and 
also  of  the  universe.^  To  Israel  belonged  the  adop- 
tion, and  the  glory,  and  the  covenants,  and  the 
giving  of  the  law,  and  the  service  of  God,  and  the 
promises.  Theirs  were  the  fathers,  and  of  them,  as 
concerning  the  flesh,  came  Christ,  Who  is  God  over 
all,  blessed  for  ever.^  To  them,  as  to  us  now,  were 
intrusted  the  oracles  of  God.  What  if  some  of  them 
were  without  faith  ?  Their  want  of  faith  could  not 
make  of  none  effect  the  faithfulness  of  God.^  His 
promise  of  old  to  the  father  of  all  the  faithful,^  In  thy 
seed  shall  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  be  blessed,^ 
stood  fast.  Of  it  the  Messiah  came,  and  the  promise 
now  is  that  He  will  return.^      This  is  our  Hope. 

^  St.  Matthew,  iii,  1-3. 

^  Romans,  xi,  4.      i  Kings,  xix,  14,  18. 

^  Co'ossians,  i,  20.  *  Romans,  ix,  4,  5. 

^  Romans,  iii,  1-4.  ®  Ibid.,  iv,  11,  16-18. 

^  Genesis,  xii,  3;  xxii,  18.    Acts,  iii,  25.    Galatians,  iii,  8,  9. 

®  St.  Matthew,  xvi,  27;  xxiv,  3,  27,  29-31.  St.  Mark,  viii,  38; 
xiii,  26,  27.  Acts,  i,  11;  iii,  20,  21.  i  Thessalonians,  ii,  19;  iv, 
14-18;  V,  i-ii.     2  Thessalonians,  ii,  1-5.     Hebrews,  ix,  28. 

Note.     In  Foot-note  (i),  page  252,  the  reference  to  the  prophet 


262        THE   LIFE   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN 

Isaiah  assumes  of  course  the  vaHdity  of  the  words  of  Jesus  Christ, 
Search  the  Scriptures  (of  the  Jews)  for  they  testify  of  Me.  The 
passage  in  Isaiah,  xlix,  appHes  to  the  humiliation  of  the  Messiah, 
to  that  extremity  of  dejection  upon  the  Cross,  which  found  ex- 
pression in  the  words,  "  My  God,  My  God,  why  hast  Thou  forsaken 
Me  ?"  The  words  of  the  prophet  throughout  the  chapter  quoted, 
as  elsewhere,  are  the  reply  ;  and,  as  to  effect  upon  the  Sufferer, 
they  are  summed  up  in  His  last  words,  "  It  is  finished,"  —  com- 
pleted, —  fulfilled.  The  words  which  follow,  "  Father,  into  Thy 
hands  I  commend  My  Spirit,"  are  a  quotation  from  the  same 
Scriptures  (Psalm,  xxxi,  5).  The  Evangelists  and  St.  Paul  con- 
tinually thus  use  the  Old  Testament,  and  we  may  reasonably 
believe  that  in  His  exposition,  after  His  Resurrection,  of  the  testi- 
mony of  "all"  the  Scriptures  (St.  Luke,  xxiv,  25-27;  Acts,  i,  3), 
He  pointed  out  the  double  prophecy  of  the  Resurrection,  that 
neither  was  the  Spirit  of  the  Messiah  left  in  Sheol,  nor  yet  did 
His  Body  see  corruption  (Psalm,  xvi,  10),  which  was  used  by  both 
St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  to  convince  the  Jews. 


THE 

PRACTICAL  IN  CHRISTIANITY 

An  Address  delivered  in  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity, 
Middletown,  Conn.y  Wednesday y  March  22,  1899. 


THE  PRACTICAL  IN  CHRISTIANITY 

IN  this  age  of  ours,  there  is  no  expression  in 
common  use  more  famihar  to  us  all  than  the 
word  "practical."  Albeit,  Hke  most  of  our 
word-coinage,  the  impression  has  become  dulled 
and  the  edges  worn,  by  circulation,  we  all  recognize 
in  it  an  idea,  which,  though  vaguer  and  more  ill- 
defined  than  should  be  attached  to  any  word  used 
to  express  thought,  nevertheless,  by  its  association 
in  our  minds,  conveys  the  notion  of  results  attained, 
by  common-sense  diligent  effort.  A  "practical" 
man,  we  feel,  is  one  who  can  be  depended  upon  to 
accomplish  the  result  which  he  undertakes,  because 
he  knows  how  to  do  it,  and  is  sure  to  use  his  knowl- 
edge to  advantage.  There  does,  indeed,  in  the 
minds  of  most  men,  run  the  attendant  idea,  that  the 
man  who  understands,  scientifically,  the  natural 
laws  upon  which  processes  and  methods  depend,  — 
not  only  that  some  are  better  than  others,  but  why 
they  are  so,  —  is  not  a  practical  man.  The  man 
who  handles  mechanical  or  electrical  apparatus 
with  competent  knowledge  of  the  effects  produced, 
by  such  and  such  disposition  of  the  various  parts 
of  the  whole,  is  practical.  The  man  who  knows 
why  all  this  is  so,  who  profoundly  understands  the 
deep  secrets  of  natural  or  mechanical  science,  who 
not  only  knows  that  such  a  cause  produces  such  an 


266     THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY 

effect,  but  knows  from  the  foundation  why  it  does 
so,  we  are  apt  to  think  is  probably  not  practical. 

In  the  sphere  of  religion,  a  like  distinction  is  also 
drawn  in  our  common  thought  to-day.  The  man 
who  leads,  more  or  less,  the  life  of  Christian  morality 

—  according  to  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  let  us 
say  —  is  a  practical  Christian;  the  man  who  seeks 
the  same  aim,  but  in  order  to  do  so  tries  to  get  below 
the  mere  surface  of  the  propositions,  even  though 
they  be  those  of  our  Lord  himself;  the  man  who 
would  know  and  understand  the  deep  spiritual 
reahties,  without  which  even  the  precepts  of  our 
Lord  —  I  say  it  with  reverence  —  become  but  the 
letter  of  a  Law,  such  a  man  is  considered  to  have 
passed  out  of  the  domain  of  practical  religion.  The 
words  "dogma"  and  "theology"  are  flung  at  his 
head,  as  at  one  who  lives  with  useless,  unpractical, 
fancies;  as  though  the  formulation  of  Christian 
Truth  —  which  is  dogma  —  were  other  than  the 
laying  of  the  solid  foundation  on  which  alone  the 
scheme  of  Christian  morality  securely  rests;   or  God 

—  the  knowledge  of  Whom  is  the  aim  of  theology  — 
were  aught  less  than  the  well-spring,  the  fountain 
head,  from  which  flows  all  spiritual  truth;  the 
stream,  in  which  alone  the  deep  spiritual  necessities 
of  our  nature  can  find  satisfaction. 

"In  knowing  God,"  says  the  Collect  for  Peace  in 
our  Morning  Prayer,  repeating  the  words  of  Christ 
Himself,^  "standeth"  —  consisteth  —  "our  Eternal 
Life."  Theology,  which  seeks  so  to  know  to  the 
utmost,  needs  no  other  justification-  and  while  un- 
^  St.  John,  xvii,  3. 


THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY     267 

doubtedly  that  knowledge  is  practical,  experimental, 
in  the  sense  that  only  he  who  has  drunk  when  thirsty 
fully  knows  the  refreshing  power  of  water,  yet  is  it 
no  less  true  that  they  who  have  explored,  as  far  as 
human  mind  can,  the  mysterious  regions  in  which 
God's  revelation  of  Himself  to  us  is  to  be  found, 
those  who  have  traced  the  stream  of  truth,  as  far 
as  man  may,  to  its  source  in  the  Being  of  the  Eternal 
Trinity,  who  have  cleared  the  channel-ways,  and 
brought  into  their  true  relations  of  unity  the  several 
rills,  into  which  the  River  of  Living  Water  that 
proceeds  out  of  the  Throne  of  God  ^  seems  at  first 
sight  to  be  divided,  so  that  they,  though  many,  are 
seen  to  be  one ;  such  men,  knit  together  in  the  Church 
of  God,  have  done  a  work  as  practical,  and  of  far 
more  general  utility  to  mankind,  than  those  who 
simply  drink  of  the  waters  and  know  that  they  do 
refresh. 

It  is  as  one  of  these  last,  however,  that  I  dare  to 
speak  to  you  to-night;  not  as  one  of  those  fully  in- 
structed as  man  can  be  in  the  deep  things  of  God, 
but  as  one  who  believes  he  knows,  from  long  personal 
experience,  the  power  of  God  and  his  own  weakness ; 
one  who,  to  recur  to  my  last  simile,  has  drunk  and 
has  been  refreshed.  "Taste  and  see,"  says  the 
Psalmist,  "how  gracious  the  Lord  is.  Blessed  is 
the  man  that  trusteth  in  Him."  ^  It  is  on  this  practi- 
cal side  of  religion,  as  one  who  has  tried  God  these 
thirty  years  and  more,  that  I  see  any  right  in  me  to 
speak.  "Hearken,  ye  that  fear  God,"  says  another 
Psalm,  "and  I  will  tell  you  what  He  hath  done  for 

*  Revelation,  xxii,  i,  2.  ^  Psalm,  xxxiv,  8.     Psalter. 


268     THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY 

my  soul."  ^  That  is  experience;  and,  on  the  side 
commonly  called  practical,  there  is  no  help  that  one 
man  can  extend  to  another  more  real,  or  more 
modest.  They  are  not  the  things  that  I  have  done, 
nor  yet  the  things  that  I  have  felt;  but  the  things 
which  I  have  found,  as  I  beheve,  to  be  done  for  me 
and  in  me. 

And  as  I  say  in  every  place  where  I  dare  to  speak 
at  all,  let  not  the  ground  on  which  I  stand  be  for  a 
moment  misunderstood.  Let  no  man  be  misled  as 
to  what  I  beheve,  concerning  Him,  of  whom  the 
dearest  thought  to  me  is  that  He  is  my  Strength,  — 
and  my  Redeemer.^  I  know  naught  of  Christian 
Life,  except  as  ever  dependent  upon,  and  issuing,  as 
a  stream  does  from  its  source,  from  the  Life  of  the 
Holy  Trinity  —  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy 
Ghost  —  from  the  One  who  is  Three.  Nor  do  I 
know  aught  of  Christian  experience,  except  as  de- 
riving from,  and  ever  connected  with,  the  Incarna- 
tion of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ;  except  as  united  to 
Him  by  the  sacramental  bonds  of  Baptism  and  Com- 
munion, so  that  His  Life,  —  in  no  figure,  but  in 
truth  and  in  power,  —  is  the  Christian's  Life;  His 
Strength,  the  Christian's  Strength.  To  aim  at 
a  Christian  life,  disunited  from  Christ's  Person, 
separated  from  the  Sacraments,  would  be  to  me 
as  practical,  as  to  attempt  to  live  apart  from  air  and 
food;  as  practical  as  hoping  to  keep  the  stream  full 
while  damming  the  channel  which  leads  from  the 
source  thereof;  as  practical  as  to  try  to  drive  an 
engine,  where  there  was  no  communication  between 

^  Psalm,  Ixvi,  14.     Psalter.  ^  Psalm,  xix,  15.     Ihid. 


THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY     269 

boiler  and  machinery.  It  is  my  conception  and  be- 
lief, speaking  as  a  practical  Christian,  with  such 
measure  of  intelligence  as  you  may  concede  to  me, 
that  all  Christian  theology,  —  knowledge  of  God,  — 
is  bound  up  in  and  proceeds  from  the  sacred  Being 
of  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost;  and  that 
that  knowledge  comes  to  us,  and  is  available  for  our 
practical  use  in  daily  Hfe,  only  through  the  Incarna- 
tion of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  through  which  the 
glory  and  the  nature  of  God  are  revealed  to  our 
spiritual  intelligence,  and  the  Life  of  God  is  trans- 
mitted for  the  sustaining  of  our  spiritual  Hfe,  which 
severed  from  Him  dies  at  once. 

And  now,  my  friends,  having  performed  the 
practical  work,  as  I  hope  it  is,  of  clearing  from  our 
minds  the  thought  of  any  other  foundation  for 
Christian  teaching  than  that  of  the  knowledge  of 
God,  as  set  forth  in  the  historic  Creeds,  it  would 
still  be  easy  again  to  lose  myself  and  you,  in  generali- 
ties as  to  the  strength  and  the  redemption  which 
from  these  truths  spring.  Nothing  is  more  unpracti- 
cal than  generalities.  Having  therefore  stated  the 
one  foundation,  I  wish  to  build  upon  it  the  definite 
practical  conclusions,  the  practical  working  scheme 
of  Christian  Life,  as  it  presents  itself  to  me  after  the 
experience  of  over  thirty  years. 

It  is  easy  to  accept,  in  a  general  way,  that  God 
is  the  source  of  all  our  strength,  that  we  can  do 
nothing  without  God's  help,  without  God's  grace, 
etc.  All  these  are  general  expressions,  familiar  to 
you  all,  possessing  in  themselves  a  great  deal  of 
truth  and  no  error;    but  they  fall  short  of  truth  in 


270     THE    PRACTICAL    IN   CHRISTIANITY 

its  fullness,  and  they  have  the  fault  of  all  general 
expressions,  especially  when  familiarized,  that  they 
cease  to  convey  sharp  and  definite  impression. 

That  therefore  upon  which  I  would  seek  to  fasten 
your  minds  this  night  is  that  a  man's  Christian  Life, 
while  it  does  possess  its  individual  existence,  does 
not  exist  of  itself  for  an  instant.  It  is  not  something 
which  exists  apart,  and  receives  help  from  outside; 
as  for  instance  our  physical  life  receives  help  from 
food.  Our  spiritual  life  holds  its  existence  by  a 
power  which  is  within  it,  as  well  as  without.  That 
power  is  not  merely  sustenance,  it  is  life  itself,  self- 
renewing  because  of  God.  Our  Lord  defined  His 
own  prerogative  of  life,  as  distinguished  from  that 
of  a  creature,  in  these  words :  —  As  the  Father  hath 
life  in  Himself,  so  gave  He  to  the  Son  also  to  have 
life  in  Himself.^  It  is  not  so  with  us.  Our  spir- 
itual life  depends  absolutely  upon  union  with  Him, 
through  Whom  we  have  the  continual  abiding 
presence  within  us,  in  our  interior  life,  of  God  the 
Holy  Ghost,  Whom  our  Lord  in  His  Ascension  sent 
forth  so  to  abide  in  us.  It  so  depends,  just  as  the 
life  of  a  branch  depends  upon  the  abiding  of  the 
vine's  life  within  it,  to  use  our  Lord's  simile;  and, 
consequently,  forasmuch  as  life  increases  not  by 
effort,  but  by  growth,  the  progress  of  the  Christian 
in  spiritual  life  results  not  from  efforts,  which  are 
his,  but  from  growth,  which  is  not  his.  The  effects 
of  this  conception,  when  realized,  upon  a  man's 
practice  of  life,  are  almost  revolutionary;  but  as  I 
dwell  upon  this  conception,  to  develop  first  itself, 
*  St.  John,  V,  26. 


THE   PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY     271 

and  then  some  of  the  consequences  which  follow 
from  it,  it  is  necessary  first  to  guard  against  the  mis- 
conception,  the  exaggeration  of  truth,  to  which  our 
human  intellects  are  liable,  from  their  proneness  to 
fly  from  one  extreme  to  the  other. 

Therefore,  when  I  say  that  life  does  not  progress 
by  effort,  you  will  not  misunderstand  me  to  mean 
that  effort,  in  its  various  forms,  —  prayer,  sacra- 
ments, discipline  of  the  will,  —  has  no  place  in  the 
Christian's  growth.  Our  Lord  has  embodied  the 
thought  that  I  am  trying  to  place  before  you  in  a 
parable,  which  one  only  of  the  Evangelists  has 
transmitted  to  us.  "So  is  the  Kingdom  of  God"  — 
which  He  elsewhere  tells  us  is  within  us  —  "as  if  a 
man  should  cast  seed  into  the  ground ; .  .  .  and  the  seed 
should  spring  and  grow  up,  he  knoweth  not  how. 
For  the  earth  bringeth  forth  fruit  of  herself;  first  the 
blade,  then  the  ear,  then  the  full  grain  in  the  ear."  ^ 
Here  you  have,  not  only  in  due  proportion,  but  also 
fully  developed,  the  two  factors  —  man's  part  and 
God's  part.  The  man  casts  the  seed  into  the  earth,  — 
an  expression  which  involves  by  implication  all  that 
man  does,  the  preparation  of  the  ground,  the  plant- 
ing, the  tending,  the  watering;  but  who  is  there  that 
knows  not  that  the  growth  of  the  grain  is  a  life 
process,  the  essential  principle  of  which  not  only 
defies  man's  investigation,  but  is  independent  of  his 
power  .?  "Which  of  you  by  anxious  thought  can  add 
one  cubit  to  his  stature  .f"' ^  This  parable  stands 
out  to  me,  among  the  many  of  the  Gospels,  because 
it  seems  to  me  to  set  forth,  more  compactly  and 
*  St.  Mark,  iv,  26-29.  ^  St.  Matthew,  vi,  27. 


272     THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY 

more  exclusively  than  any  other,  the  secret  of  Chris- 
tian Hfe.  The  hearing  of  God's  word,  prayer,  the 
outward  act  of  receiving  the  sacraments,  spiritual 
effort  of  every  character,  —  this  is  man's  part,  — 
the  casting  of  the  seed  and  the  tending  of  it;  but  the 
growth  is  not  of  him.  The  ripening  of  the  life,  the 
maturing  of  the  Christian  character,  goes  on  by 
itself,  not  independent  of  man's  care,  but  wholly 
independent  of  man's  power.  "Not  by  might,  nor 
by  power,  but  by  My  Spirit,  saith  the  Lord  of 
Hosts."  1 

To  know  really  a  truth  like  this,  with  that  con- 
viction which  alone  is  worthy  of  the  name  knowl- 
edge, is  the  result  of  personal  experience;  the  work, 
therefore,  of  years.  We  all  know  the  difference  be- 
tween hearing  a  truth  from  another,  accepting  it 
on  his  word,  and  that  reaHzation  which  comes  from 
testing  it  for  one's  self — from  experience,  in  short. 
"I  have  heard  of  Thee  by  the  hearing  of  the  ear," 
said  Job  to  the  Almighty,  "but  now  mine  eye  seeth 
Thee.  Wherefore  I  abhor  myself. ^^  ^  And  so  it  is. 
We  hear,  —  hear  from  one  or  from  another,  —  but 
though  we  hear  we  do  not  appreciate,  until,  perhaps 
after  many  years,  the  veil  is  lifted  and  we  see  our- 
selves and  Him.  Then  the  result  is  ever  the  same 
as  with  Job.  The  man  abhors  himself.  "All  our 
righteousness  is  as  filthy  rags,"  saith  one  prophet. 
I  suffer  the  loss  of  all  things,  said  St.  Paul,  speak- 
ing of  his  own  tireless  efforts.  I  count  them  but 
as  refuse,  if  I  may  win  Christ.^     It  is  a  poor  and 

*  Zechariah,  iv,  6.     Compare,  Isaiah,  xxx,  15. 

^  Job,  xlii,  5,  6.  ^  Philippians,  iii,  8. 


THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY     273 

partial  reading  of  these  words  to  see  St.  Paul  modestly 
disclaiming  merit  for  his  works,  great  as  they  were. 
He  tells  us  elsewhere  that  not  only  are  his  efforts 
powerless  to  constitute  merit,  they  are  powerless 
also  to  maintain  the  flame  of  spiritual  life.  "I  live; 
yet  not  I,  but  Christ  liveth  in  me :  and  the  life  which 
I  now  live  in  the  flesh,  I  live  in  the  faith  of  the  Son 
of  God."  ^  Untiring  as  man's  eff'orts  may  be,  and 
much  as  they  may  conduce  to  constitute  conditions, 
favorable  to  life  and  to  growth,  the  life  is  not  his, 
never  was  his;  never,  thank  God,  will  be  his.  It 
was  given  to  him;  it  is  maintained  in  him.  He 
grows,  but  he  does  not  make  himself.  There  is  no 
self-made  man  in  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

It  is  the  grace  of  God  to  advancing  years,  a  grace 
which,  when  received,  more  than  compensates  the 
man  for  the  beauty  and  freshness  of  youth,  that 
with  the  lapse  of  time  he  thus  more  and  more  sees 
his  Maker  as  He  is,  and  sees  himself  as  he  is.  To 
know  one's  own  weakness  is  hard  to  the  yet  untried 
strength  of  youth ;  but  that  knowledge  of  weakness 
is,  to  the  aging,  only  less  dear  than  the  proved 
knowledge  of  God's  strength  and  faithfulness. 

"  Let  me  no  more  my  comfort  draw 
From  my  frail  hold  on  Thee; 
In  this  alone  rejoice,  with  awe, 
Thy  mighty  grasp  of  me."  2 

Nothing  but  experience,  often  sad,  more  often 
joyful,  can  bring  this  knowledge  to  the  individual; 
but  we  all  know  well  that,  while  nothing  teaches 

*  Galatians,  ii,  20.  ^  John  Campbell  Shairp. 

18 


274     THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY 

like  personal  experience,  while  nothing  can  take  its 
place,  nevertheless  the  experience  of  each  genera- 
tion becomes  a  fresh  starting  point  for  the  one  which 
succeeds.  Each  new  generation  enters  upon  the 
heritage  of  its  predecessor's  experience;  and  while 
the  transmitted  experience,  —  the  hearing  of  the 
ear,  —  can  never  equal  the  personal  experience,  — 
the  seeing  of  the  eye,  —  nevertheless  the  starting 
point  of  the  new  age  is,  or  should  be,  an  advance 
upon  that  of  the  preceding.  Those  who  are  of  my 
age,  and  with  whom  God  has  dealt,  know  that  our 
point  of  view  has  advanced  beyond  that  delivered 
to  us.  We  have  more  than  was  bequeathed  to  us. 
It  is  for  us  to  communicate  the  gain  to  our  successors. 
It  will  take  time  for  them  to  make  it  their  own,  but, 
if  they  will  hear,  God  will  open  their  eyes;  they 
will  know  sooner  than  we  did,  and  so  will  advance 
beyond  the  point  which  we  have  reached. 

If  a  generation  has  made  any  spiritual  advance 
over  its  predecessors,  has  any  contribution  to  leave 
to  its  successors,  they  will  not  be  the  work  of  any 
one  man,  but  of  the  many  who  together  make  up 
the  full  body  of  result.  The  interaction  of  the 
whole  Body  of  Christ,  conscious  and  unconscious, 
goes  to  each  separate  eflFort,  coloring  and  modifying. 
This,  then,  is  my  reason  for  speaking,  and  these 
are  the  things  which  I  have  found,  the  hearing  of 
my  ear,  and  then  the  seeing  of  my  eye,  the  work 
which  God  has  wrought  in  me.  I  live,  yet  not  I. 
So  too,  as  I  live,  I  know;  for,  although  the  intellectual 
satisfaction  that  I  derive  from  God's  word  passes 
all  intellectual   pleasure  known  to  me,   although  I 


THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY     275 

recognize  the  profound  insight,  the  logical  com- 
pleteness, the  constant  recurrence  of  undesigned 
coincidences,  which  prove  the  oneness  of  the  Mind 
running  throughout  the  Sacred  Word;  although  all 
this  be  so,  it  is  not  thus  that  I  know.  I  live,  yet  not 
I ;  I  know,  yet  not  I  —  not  of  myself.  I  knew  long 
ago  by  intellectual  acceptance;  I  know  now  by  a 
knowledge  for  which  I  can  give  no  account;  but  I 
know  as  I  never  knew  of  old. 

I  know,  and  I  tell  you.  Few  may  beHeve.  It  is 
my  testimony,  however;  the  things  that  I  knew  in 
the  past,  the  things  I  know  now;  and  some  doubtless 
will  believe.  But  I  am  not  here  to  talk  about  my- 
self, but  about  Him.  To  those  who  may  believe  on 
my  word,  it  remains  to  do  as  the  Samaritans  did 
on  the  saying  of  their  woman :  go  to  Christ,  expect- 
ing to  receive  at  His  hands. ^  And  I  feel  justified  in 
believing  that  through  my  generation  telling  you 
to  expect  that  which  I,  at  least,  did  not  for  a  long 
time  apprehend,  you  will  find  earlier  than  I  found : 
you  will  find  that  knowledge,  and  that  confidence, 
the  possession  of  which  passeth  all  understanding, 
like  the  Peace  of  God,^  —  which  indeed  it  is.  "Now 
we  believe,"  said  the  Samaritans,  "not  because  of  thy 
word;  but  we  have  seen  for  ourselves,  and  know 
that  this  is  the  Christ,  the  Saviour  of  the  World." 

It  was  not  thus  that  I  can  remember  that  I  was 
taught;  and  my  teaching  came  from  men  not  faith- 
ful only,  but  capable  and  learned  also.  It  seems 
to  me  the  advance  not  of  myself,  individually,  but 
of  my  generation.     The  Christian  life,  as  presented 

^  St.  John,  iv,  39-42.  ^  Philippians,  iv,  4-7. 


276     THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY 

to  my  intelligence  and  as  I  recall,  was  a  life  of  bat- 
tling, of  hard  work,  of  systematic  effort,  crowned 
by  the  rewards  of  labor.  God  forbid  that  I  should 
ignore  that  side  of  it,  which  the  Bible  also  asserts. 
It  is  a  warfare  and  a  labor.  But  while  good  Pro- 
testant doctrine  of  justification  by  faith  and  the 
insufficiency  of  one's  own  merits,  and  of  one's  own 
efforts,  were  kept  well  to  the  front,  yet  after  all  the 
battle  was  first  mine,  then  the  Lord's.  I  was  to 
save  my  own  soul  —  which  by  the  way  is  man's 
first  duty,  because  above  all  other  cares  God  has 
charged  him  to  deliver  back  his  own  soul,  as  his 
own  talents,  improved,  —  I  was  to  save  my  soul,  by 
God's  help.  There  was  a  hymn  in  those  days,  of 
which  two  lines  ran : 

"  The  work  to  be  performed  Is  ours^ 
The  strength  is  all  His  own.'* 

I  do  not  now  feel  it  so.  I  no  longer  say,  "I  will  do 
this,  God  helping  me."  I  say  only,  "I  will  help 
God  to  do  this."  The  difference  is  real.  Like  the 
springing  of  the  grain,  the  work  —  the  hfe  —  is  His. 
I  can  but  help  my  little.  A  man  does  not  work  less 
hard  for  this  thought,  but  he  works  with  less  anxiety, 
with  more  confidence;  for  there  can  be  no  doubt  of 
God's  success. 

But  doubtless  some  one  will  say:  This  may  all 
be  true;  but,  practically,  how  am  I  to  proceed  in 
order  to  test  it  .f*  The  question  is  right;  my  reply 
is  this :  Assuming  that  you  are  conscious  of  this 
or  that  fault,  of  this  or  that  defect,  first  fasten  your 
purpose   upon   the   expectation,   not   that  you   shall 


THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY     277 

overcome,  but  that  it  shall  disappear,  much  as  in 
the  natural  world  infirmities  at  times  disappear  with 
advancing  growth  or  returning  health.  The  con- 
ception of  overcoming  is  scriptural,  as  is  that  of 
growth;  but  in  practical  effect  upon  our  minds, 
unless  balanced  by  the  clear  apprehension  of  the 
complementary  truth  which  I  seek  to  place  before 
you,  it  tends  to  attributing  predominance,  or  at  the 
least  exaggerated  importance,  to  one's  own  efforts; 
the  idea  of  disappearance  associates  readily  with 
the  conviction  that  the  result  has  been  achieved  for 
you  and  in  you  —  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  in  short. 

But  is  there  nothing  that  I  must  do?  You  are  to 
do  what  the  man  does  who  casts  seed  into  the  earth, 
and  tends  the  ground.  You  are  to  do  as  the  Baptist : 
level  the  hills,  exalt  the  valleys,  make  ready  the  way.^ 
You  are  to  supply  the  conditions  essential  to  the 
Lord's  coming,  by  prayer,  by  sacrament,  by  effort, 
for  these  are  means  which  He  has  ordained;  but 
you  are  not  to  fall  into  the  spiritual  error  of  expect- 
ing that  the  doing  these  things  will  make  you  good, 
that  you  will  conquer  by  their  means.  It  is  through 
Him  that  loved  us  that  we  are  more  than  con- 
querors.^ You  are  to  guard  carefully  against  con- 
founding the  conditions  with  the  Hfe  itself.  The 
life  is  God's  gift,  its  continuance  and  its  growth  are 
His  gifts  —  in  no  wise  the  result  of  your  actions,  be 
these  of  the  best.  Confusion  on  this  point  is  a  spir- 
itual blunder,  it  is  working  on  wrong  Hues;  and 
spiritual   blunders   entail   practical   disaster  just   as 

^  Isaiah,  xl,  3-5.     St.  Matthew,  iii,  3. 

^  Romans,  viii,  ^J.     i  Corinthians,  xv,  57. 


278     THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY 

all  blunders  do.  This  blunder  also  is  of  the  greatest 
—  is  fundamental;  for  it  is  misdirected  faith,  and 
faith  is  the  foundation  of  Christian  life.  The  man 
who  expects  to  overcome  by  his  own  efforts,  though 
with  God's  help,  trusts  —  has  faith  —  at  least  partly 
in  himself.  The  man  who  expects  that  spiritual 
life,  given  in  baptism,  will  grow,  because  God,  Who 
gave  life,  gives  also  growth,  trusts  in  God  only.  He 
recognizes  that,  do  what  he  will,  life  and  growth  are 
utterly  beyond  his  power;  and  thus  recognizing,  and 
resting  his  hopes  wholly  upon  Him  Who  can  give, 
he  is  a  practical  Christian,  one  who  resorts  most 
directly  to  the  one  means  by  which  the  hoped-for 
result  can  be  attained. 

Look,  therefore,  you  who  would  serve  God,  to  see 
results  wrought  in  you  which  you  cannot  explain. 
Pray  for  faith,  —  which  also  is  God's  gift ;  ^  faith  to 
believe  in  God  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  in  the  powers 
of  the  world  to  come,^  as  in  living  realities,  far  more 
real  than  the  air  you  breathe,  and  than  the  sunshine 
which  surrounds  you.  Do  not  cease  an  atom  of 
work,  whether  it  take  the  form  of  effort,  or  of  prayer, 
or  of  sacraments,  or  whatever  else  may  tend  to 
facilitate  growth.  Be  each  one  as  St.  John  the 
Baptist,  one  who  is  busy  preparing  the  way  of  the 
Lord,  making  the  paths  straight,  removing  every 
obstacle;  but  do  not  confound  these  preparations 
with  the  Lord's  own  coming.  Remember,  too,  that 
as  God  was  not  in  the  earthquake  or  the  whirlwind, 
but  in  the  still  small  voice,^  so  His  coming  usually  is ; 

1  Ephesians,  ii,  8.  ^  Hebrews,  vi,  4,  5. 

^  I  Kings,  xix,  1 1 -1 3. 


THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY     279 

—  "not  with  observation."^  He  will  have  come 
and  you  scarcely  know  the  moment;  as  when  He 
came  in  the  flesh,  a  little  child,  and  few  regarded. 
And  when  He  is  come,  take  again  for  your  own  the 
loving  words  of  the  Baptist:  "He  must  increase,  I 
must  decrease.''  ^  Decrease  I  must,  not  because 
years  are  coming  and  natural  strength  failing,  but 
because  more  and  more  He  takes  the  work.  "Our 
sufficiency  is  from  God."  ^ 

Such  is  my  experience  which  I  give  to  you.  Some 
distant  day,  perhaps,  some  one  here  young  may  tell 
a  future  generation  that  he  was  helped  along  his 
road  —  not  by  me,  but  by  the  Spirit  of  God  speaking 
through  me;  for  unless  it  be  the  Spirit  that  speaks, 
and  not  I,  these  words  are  vain.  Perhaps  then  he 
will  feel  that,  having  been  so  helped,  he,  at  the  close 
of  his  days,  was  farther  on  than  else  he  would  have 
been. 

In  conclusion  :  Do  you  remember  the  words  of  our 
Lord :  "  When  a  strong  man  armed  keepeth  his 
palace,  his  goods  are  in  peace :  but  when  a  Stronger 
than  he  shall  come  upon  him,  and  overcome  him.  He 
taketh  from  him  all  his  armor  wherein  he  trusted,  and 
divideth  the  spoils."  ^  Our  Lord  was  speaking  of  the 
struggle  between  Himself  and  the  powers  of  darkness ; 
but  no  teaching  of  Scripture  is  of  mere  private  inter- 
pretation, narrowed  to  the  immediate  occasion; 
and  it  has  seemed  to  me  that  the  experience  of  each 
Christian  is  much  like  this,  and  that  the  earlier  it  is 
learned,  the  happier  the  man,  or  the  generation,  or 

*  St.  Luke,  xvii,  20.  ^  St.  John,  iii,  30. 

^  2  Corinthians,  iii,  5.  *  St.  Luke,  xi,  21,  22. 


28o     THE    PRACTICAL    IN    CHRISTIANITY 

the  race.  We  begin,  perhaps  not  exactly  by  trusting 
in  ourselves,  but  in  laying  great  store  —  not  wholly 
undeserved  —  upon  the  things  we  ourselves  do; 
upon  our  prayers,  our  efforts,  our  observances  of 
every  kind.  They  are  right;  they  are  good;  they 
are  incumbent;  but  the  great  trouble  is  that  they 
are  ours,  rather  than  His.  So  we  go  forth,  genera- 
tion after  generation,  to  the  conflict  —  and  many  a 
rattling  fall  we  get.  But  at  last  there  cometh  One 
stronger  than  we,  and  He  takes  us  from  all  that 
armor  in  which  we  trusted  —  the  armor  which  has 
been  ours,  not  His  —  and  divides  all  that  spoil  which 
we  may  have  thought  we  had  gained.  Thenceforth 
there  is  indeed  peace,  for  the  man  overcome  has 
ceased  from  himself,  and  looks  only  to  Another, 
Whose  power  has  never  failed. 


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